Smart Bombs: Can’t stand the 2016 suspense

So grateful that Sen. Ted Cruz announced he’s running for president because other politicians make it so difficult to determine their intentions.

Hillary Clinton has amassed a pile of money and recently bobbed and weaved in the face of email jabs. Just like anyone who’s set on being a private citizen.

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker heads across the border a lot, but he could’ve been suddenly seduced by the tourism opportunities in Iowa. Haven’t we all dreamed of a va-cay in Dubuque? And just because he’s executed a double U-turn on immigration doesn’t mean he’s angling for a path to the White House that skirts nativist barriers.

Last Wednesday, Kentucky Sen. Rand Paul called for a budget amendment that bumps up defense spending. Sure, that reverses his earlier stand on Pentagon profligacy, but it doesn’t mean he’s running for president. You people can be so cynical.

Donald Trump keeps tweeting about how America needs a real leader, while spotlighting his towering achievements in educational television and self-effacing signage. Plus, he’s questioning whether the Canadian-born Cruz is even eligible to be president, and is planning on heading to Iowa to give a speech on education. Common Core or Common Bore? Just so hard to tell.

Rudy Giuliani, the mayor of 9/11, can’t seem to stay out of the headlines. But just because he offers unsolicited opinions on Israel, police brutality and whether the president has a crush on America doesn’t mean he wants to bunk at the White House. Maybe he just wants a show on Fox.

Bobby Jindal, the governor of Louisiana, is telling everyone he’s an “authentic conservative,” unlike those other guys, who may or may not be running. His policy papers address a variety of national and international issues, but maybe he’s run out of problems in well-oiled Louisiana.

Florida Sen. Marco Rubio flip-flopped on immigration before it was cool. He currently resides in the impenetrable-border camp, but that doesn’t mean he’s sweating the Republican primary. Could be that Miami humidity.

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush is the target of the entire list of non-candidates. He’s ducking Cruz missiles, too. But it wouldn’t be prudent at this juncture to say he’s running.

So, thank you, Ted Cruz, for making that announcement, even if it was in front of a captive audience of college students. As of today, you are the lone candidate, and the office is yours to lose. I’m sure you’ll find a way.

Idle hands. Last April, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers told The Spokesman-Review editorial board that the Affordable Care Act was “probably” here to stay. It was a simple nod to reality that sparked a political firestorm. Last week, she touted the House budget, which calls for total repeal and relayed some anecdotes of people harmed by the law. She didn’t mention the bounty of good news stories that piled up on her Facebook page.

So, five years in, Republican leadership is sticking to the long-shot strategy of repeal without replacement. Looming in the background is a possible U.S. Supreme Court decision this June that would end subsidies for millions of Americans who purchased insurance on federal exchanges. Republicans could change one sentence in the law to forestall the devastation. They could come up with a subsidy-replacement plan. Or they could do nothing.

So far, inaction is carrying the day. This frightens Republican governors, because the pressure will shift to them to establish state-run exchanges, which would reopen the subsidy spigot. Wyoming Gov. Matt Mead recently warned of the turmoil, saying he hopes the court upholds a law he doesn’t like.

Then again, it wouldn’t be the first time reality has been filibustered by obstinance-only leaders.