Targets Ted

Conservative group targets Ted Cruz in Iowa

By ALEX ISENSTADT

With concern about Ted Cruz rising among rival Republican camps, a new GOP-aligned group is stepping forward in hopes of sinking him.

Starting Wednesday, the Iowa Progress Project will begin a $200,000 media campaign targeting Cruz in the state, where the Texas senator has emerged as the front-runner in a number of recent polls.

The conservative group, which will be airing ads on TV and radio, is the brainchild of Nick Ryan, a longtime political strategist in Iowa who was a former top aide to GOP ex-Rep. Jim Nussle. Ryan is the president of Pursuing America's Greatness, a super PAC supporting Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

Iowa Progress Project is the second group to target Cruz. In recent weeks he has also come under attack from America's Renewable Future, a pro-ethanol group headed by the son of Iowa Gov. Terry Branstad.