The anger was palpable in the Florida delegation Wednesday night – and among some members of Sen.
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And yet on Wednesday night, Cruz did something that Walker and Ryan and Chris Christie and many other Republicans haven’t done: He refused to knuckle under to Donald Trump. As Cruz encouraged the hall to “vote your conscience”, Frankowski was booing loudly and denouncing the vanquished presidential candidate.
This compares poorly with how Republicans viewed their last candidate for the presidency, Mitt Romney, on the eve of the party’s national convention in 2012. Trump’s son Eric called it “classless”. “Ted Cruz squandered a great opportunity”. I’m feeling kind of disgusted right now. Anti-Trump forces seeking to derail Donald Trump’s nomination responded with loud and angry chants, though they were quickly quieted and there were no lingering signs of the protests as delegates returned to the cavernous convention hall later that evening. I was hoping for unity. But he wasn’t surprised one bit when Cruz made no endorsement. He warned the GOP against making words like “Trump” and “Hillary” the dominant themes of the election, saying the party will only win if “freedom” is front and center. Clinton’s campaign and the Democratic Party have seized on the comments by Cruz and the rift among Republicans.
The GOP nominee is also expected to echo many of his campaign themes, including his vow to change “bad” trade deals that undermine U.S. manufacturing and his pledge to build an anti-immigration wall along the U.S.-Mexico border.
“I don’t care about the oneness of the party”, said White, a nurse. It’s stunning and begs the question: Are we watching the death throes of the Republican Party?
“I was furious. Furious”, said Russell. “And yeah, I think they were less than pleased that we weren’t going to go with a full endorsement”.
The Republican nominee made no mention of his former rival as he read his 75-minute speech from the teleprompters Thursday night, but switched gears the following morning.
Trump went on to say that he is certain that President Barack Obama “truly regrets” his decision to appoint her as secretary of state in 2009. The illness causes vomiting and diarrhoea, and spreads explosively through people in confined places, leading one observer here in Cleveland to note that this convention is for some “literally a sh*t show”.
At the Texas Delegation Breakfast Thursday morning, there were some delegates shouting Cruz will never be president. On Thursday, however, Trump campaign chairman Paul Manafort seemed to contradict that, telling ABC News the campaign “didn’t know [Cruz] wasn’t going to endorse Trump”.
Donald Trump will make his fourth appearance at the RNC tonight when he gives his victory lap speech after offically becoming the Republican Party’s presidential nominee.
“I’ll tell you the day that pledge was abrogated. I didn’t like what Trump said about him”, said Adryana Boyne, a Cruz delegate from Texas who has been public about her own disagreements with Trump in the past.
In a contest that pits two politicians viewed as unfavorable by large segments of the American people, Trump also accused Clinton, 68, of being the puppet of big business, elite media and major donors who want to preserve the current political system.
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He then went on to say, “Our convention occurs at a moment of crisis for our nation”.
