It was an altogether smoother – and more scripted – chapter in a footloose convention shocked a night earlier by Cruz’s prime-time speech, a pointed non-endorsement of the nominee by the Texas senator who finished second in the race and came to Cleveland harboring grievances – and future presidential ambitions. At the top of the list: Unifying a fractured party and quieting Americans’ concerns about his preparedness for the presidency.
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‘Is this guy running for president or dictator?’ he asked in another tweet. In his over an hour long speech, the NY billionaire spoke about Clinton’s legacy of “death, destruction, terrorism and weakness” as the secretary of state and highlighted perceived failings of President Barack Obama’s administration. On Wednesday those doubts were laid bare when Trump’s primary rival and conservative flag-bearer Ted Cruz pointedly refused to endorse him.
Trump prepared for his big night amid another flap over his commitment to US military alliances, including North Atlantic Treaty Organisation.
An employee of the Trump Organisation later apologised and admitted her role in writing Melania Trump’s speech, but not before the address triggered backlash on social media.
Trump will be introduced by his daughter Ivanka Trump who has been an important behind-the-scenes adviser.
Just before her father received the nomination on the convention’s second day, Trump took some time backstage to check in on her three young children on FaceTime, holding on to her white Hopewell satchel from her collection. “Any politician who does not grasp this danger is not fit to lead our country”. He promised to work “so hard” and vowed his campaign was “not going to disappear”, even though he has no plans to campaign this weekend and no events on his schedule for next week.
Of course, I didn’t buy what he was saying.
“We will never sign bad trade deals”, Mr Trump said.
“Our convention occurs at a moment of crisis for our nation”, Trump said, to wild applause and cheers.
Republicans have used their convention to rally loyalists, but fissures have persisted after a brutal primary battle in which Trump defeated 16 rivals. The candidate has also shown zero interest in thinking about the issue.
“No matter what you think of Donald Trump, as a Republican…you have no choice”, he said.
Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell, a reluctant Trump backer, praised NATO’s role in the world and said he hoped the comments were only “a rookie mistake”.
But it was really surprising to hear that Donald Trump will fight for these kinds of policies. But that goal seemed guaranteed to go unfulfilled following Cruz’s stubborn defiance on the convention stage. Unity? There wasn’t one person in the room, including the Texas delegation, right? Here’s everything you need to know about last night’s events.
“For more than a year, Donald Trump has been the people’s champion”, she said.
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Trump supporters were furious at Cruz, including New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who called the senator “totally selfish”.
