AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Ted Cruz appears uncomfortable defending the man he says he’ll vote for in November, Donald Trump.

Addressing a policy forum organized by The Texas Tribune, the Texas senator said Saturday it was “agonizing” making the decision to back Trump, whom he once called a “pathological liar” and “serial philanderer.” He denied he caved in to pressure from top Republicans nationally and in his home state, saying he would have faced an outcry no matter what.

“Any path we took, if I supported Donald, if I didn’t support Donald, the criticism was going to be there,” Cruz told a packed auditorium.

Cruz offered little defense of Trump’s past comments on Muslim-Americans. He also said his two young daughters, while campaigning with him in the primaries, had felt the sting of Trump’s comments about women. Asked whether he thought Russian President Vladimir Putin was a better leader than President Barack Obama, as Trump suggested, Cruz said, “I have no intention of defending everything Donald Trump says or does.”... Read More: FOX17