Today [Thursday, July 21] Ted Cruz spoke about his reasons for refusing to endorse Donald Trump as the Republican presidential candidate during a meeting where he was faced with questions from the Texas delegation in Cleveland. According to CNN, he stated he’s not “in the habit” of endorsing politicians who attack his family.
Cruz was met with a prolonged standing ovation while walking on stage to give his speech where he also highlighted the fact Trump has insulted him on multiple occasions, while Cruz has kept it as professional as possible, turning to the crowd he asked if they could see Trump answering questions from the media in a professional light, and the crowd responded with a few boos and claps.
It was Wednesday that Cruz gave his speech congratulating Trump on winning the nomination, but as his speech came to an end, it became obvious that he was not endorsing Trump.
“I congratulate Donald Trump on winning the nomination last night,” Cruz said. “And like each of you, I want to see the principles that our party believes prevail in November.”
He continued, “Don’t stay home in November. Stand and speak and vote your conscience.”
By the end of his speech, he was met with boos from the crowd; Trump had also got wind of Cruz’s speech as he appeared in the Quickens Loans Arena as Cruz was wrapping up his speech. As a response, Trump gave a simple thumbs up, which was acknowledged as “a gesture that transmitted clear anger at the Texas senator’s behavior,” according to reports.
Trump later tweeted, “Wow, Ted Cruz got booed off the stage, didn’t honor the pledge! I saw his speech two hours early but let him speak anyway. No big deal!”
Other members of the Republican party, who had also ran to be a presidential candidate were also disappointed in Cruz’s failure to honor the pledge, specifically New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.
“I think it was awful,” Christie said. “And quite frankly, I think it was something selfish. And he signed a pledge. And it’s his job to keep his word.”
Trump’s lawyer also felt that Cruz was in the wrong, stating that “the only way to describe it is political suicide.”
Hillary Clinton‘s campaign, however, used the opportunity to their advantage, tweeting a sentence from Cruz’s speech, “Vote your conscience” with a link to her website.
