cruz called republicans gray beards, career politicians, didn't rule out another shutdown and you heard john mccain say you can't have another shutdown, it hurt his state, hurt the party brand. are they just living in alternate universes? >> they are, and the universe that ted cruz is living in is real for his world. it really is. what i witnessed in texas was unbelievable. there were women in tears when they saw him saying he was their hero, saying there's finally somebody in washington standing up for them. remember, just talking about the state that he represents, there hasn't been a democrat who won their statewide since 1994. obama lost by 16 points in texas. so that could change ultimately, but then take that constituency and you look at it around the country, this has helped his brand with that constituency and that's who he is appealing to, the core conservatives. >> there's no doubt he's running, right? >> yeah. >> alex, the brand. the brand, you heard what john mccain said, this is killing our brand. agree or disagree? >> well, if you want to see the