"The Don has now set the standard that will force the others to match or show their true colors."
This is the true utility of the man. More than anything else, he's been poking, prodding, and goading everyone else to lay their cards on the table. For all the fluff, childish bickering, and shallowness he's introduced into the race, it has become a race of issues and not talking-points for the first time in a while. The last three cycles I've been of age to vote, it was all about "who can we get in that chair" rather than "what do we want him to do" and the recent change is a relief.
I still doubt Don has the temperament or even the desire to get through the election (which would explain his propensity to hand-wave a lot of the implementation questions of his policy positions), but at this point he undoubtedly sees himself as something of a king-maker, able to directly drive the actions of his competitors. I think it is extremely interesting that only one of the candidates seems to be going out of his way to avoid picking personal fights with the man, while at the same time hanging back during these debates to let Trump take point (and all the damage) against all the other frontrunners. This despite being essentially, a professional debater. I think Cruz is letting Donald push the "overton window" or "zeitgeist" or whatever you want to call it, in his direction, while not becoming himself entangled with the petty squabbles plaguing all the other front runners early on in the process.
Not a bad plan, seeing as the two or three front runners for the GOP the last several cycles have all fallen by the wayside by the time it mattered. Romney/Huckabee made way for McCain, then like six guys in succession made way for Romney this last go around (ironically, Romney would have likely faired better his first go around in '08, and McCain in 2012 than Romney). Hopefully, the two are actively colluding to some degree, and we can see some sort of firearms policy address by Cruz in the near future. Seeing as he has one of the most fully developed views on the issue, it'd be interesting to see some specific areas he thinks he could impact things.
Things like;
-Withdrawing bureau opposition to the arguments in Hollis v Holder, since it makes no sense for a tax bureau to oppose its own ability to collect taxes
-Directing the ATF to make its first priority the streamlining of the NFA approvals process, so it takes mere days to pay your tax, then receive confirmation, just as is the case in every other tax bureau
-Rescinding the import ban on barrels (which, unlike the quasi-justifiable Norinco/Kalashnikov bans, has no practical basis)
-Directing the ATF to formally publish many of its technical findings and rulings in a searchable format, and more importantly, forcing them to square their many contradictory decisions
-Pressing congress to strip those traitorous words "sporting purposes" from all federal gun legislation, & directing the ATF to include target shooting and all competitive shooting sports in its definition in the meantime (this would single-handedly neuter 922r, ammo bans, some destructive device restrictions, and most import bans)
-Wherever he can, persuading the slave states to loosen their restrictions (the president has many political knobs and levers to encourage local governments and officials)
-Punish repressive locales with the same knobs and levers for prosecuting gun laws that are clearly unfair; taking point and pardoning unfortunate mothers & servicemen marooned in urban jails, without waiting for prosecutors or governors to see the bad publicity.
TCB
