Immediately following Cruz’s speech, a series of party leaders – both Trump loyalists and reluctant supporters – slammed the Texas firebrand for his non-endorsement, in which he told the audience to “vote their conscience”.
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Rival Ted Cruz spoke yesterday, drawing boos from the crowd after failing to endorse Trump for president.
Anti-Trump Republican delegate Ken Cuccinelli told Reuters he escorted Cruz’s wife Heidi off the convention floor in Cleveland out of concern for her safety.
Cruz, the Republican runner-up to Trump in the delegate count, has never had the best relationship the party’s newly crowned nominee. If that’s the case, Cruz could be the one to pick up the pieces; to say to everyone that he knew from the start what a disaster Trump would be at the head of the ticket for the party.
But instead of endorsing Trump by name, Cruz called on voters to not stay home in November.
When it comes to the jeers, Sharon Carter, a California delegate from San Diego, said, “He deserved it. He deserved it wholeheartedly”.
As chants of “Endorse Trump” began to emanate, NY delegates stood and shouted feet from where the former presidential hopeful was delivering his speech. “That was a time that the senator could have let bygones be bygones and support the candidate which he said he would support, and he went back on his word….” And of whom former Speaker of the House John Boehner once said: “I have never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch in my life”.
Cruz has strong support in Wisconsin: He won the state’s primary by 13 points and garnered endorsements from Walker and other high-profile Republicans.
Boos could be heard throughout the Quicken Loans Arena during the primetime speech as delegates wanted to hear the Texas senator endorse Trump. Sheldon was letting him know how he felt about what he had just witnessed, an extremely selfish move against the Republican Party and Donald Trump.
On Thursday, Cruz sought to defend his decision, saying he’s not “in the habit of supporting people” who attack his wife and father.
Looking up, Cruz saw why: Trump’s Boeing 757, unmistakable thanks to its dark blue paintjob and giant TRUMP logo, was passing overhead.
Cruz “gave the most captivating speech of the entire week, and then it just turned (with) his phrase at the very end” about voting your conscience, Burlison said.
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“We have the right to free speech”, Weidenkopf said. Politicians will see – it makes all the difference in the world to us.
