As the list of presidential hopefuls grows longer and longer, the media must decide who is worth listening to among the myriad voices clamoring for attention.

I heard on Rachel Maddow’s show the other night that there are more than 300 candidates already, and I bet there will be more.

Obviously, it’s impossible for the media to give all of them a soap box.

Among the Republicans, the pundits have identified about 30 “credible” candidates. And on the first page of the leader board is Ted Cruz.

So the media must be convinced that Cruz has a constituency. And he did get elected to the US Senate. But I can’t think of many voters outside of Texas who would pick him as their President.

Cruz says and does the craziest things. I suppose he thinks he is pandering to the extreme Republican base. But why would folks who revel in racism and bigotry vote for a Canadian-born candidate whose father comes from Cuba?

It seems bizarre that a Hispanic who was born in Alberta would run on a racist, xenophobic platform.

I don’t think he can count on most Hispanics voting for him, either. The name Cruz may sound undeniably Spanish, but, generally, Cuban-Americans have little in common with other Hispanics in this country. They’re a separate political entity – and they have their own candidate, Senator Marco Rubio.

Anyway, I don’t think many of the Cuban-Americans I met in Miami would vote for a candidate whose father fought for Castro.

So why does Cruz get so much attention from the media?

I suppose crazy talk and absurd posturing attract readers and viewers. But it wears thin after a while.

I just change the channel now when Cruz shows up on my TV.

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