On Wednesday, during a 20 plus minute speech at the RNC convention in Cleveland, Ohio, Texas Senator Ted Cruz managed to rock the Republican Party to its core with a stunningly defiant refusal to endorse the official presidential candidate Donald Trump.
“If you love our country and love your children as much as I know that you do, stand and speak and vote your conscience,” Cruz said. “Vote for…”
At this point, many were expecting Cruz to say Donald Trump, but instead, he said, “candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom and to be faithful to the Constitution.”
Cruz was eventually boo’d off the stage as he concluded his speech in with a smug smile on his face ignoring the thousands of angry objections being hurled at him from the audience. Cruz concluded:
“The case we have to make to the American people … is to commit to each of them that we will defend freedom and be faithful to the Constitution.”
New Jersey Governor Chris Christie didn’t mince words:
“It was an awful, selfish speech by someone who tonight, through the words he said on that stage, showed everybody why he has richly earned the reputation that he has on Capitol Hill,” Christie said to reporters on the floor of the convention.
WATCH: Gov. Christie on Ted Cruz: "Awful, selfish speech … showed himself tonight to not be a man of his word." https://t.co/jjvRlWX3Wf
— NBC Nightly News (@NBCNightlyNews) July 21, 2016
And Republican New York Congressman Peter King had even harsher remarks reserved for the man he now describes as a “total fraud.”
“To me, Ted Cruz showed America what he really is — he’s a fraud, he’s a liar, he’s self-centered, he disqualified himself from ever being considered for President of the United States,” King said.
“Today is the Ted Cruz I’ve know, unfortunately. He cannot be trusted. He’s not a true Republican, he’s not a true conservative, he’s totally self-centered. I never saw such outrage and anger on the floor as I saw toward Ted Cruz tonight, and he deserved every bit of it. He’s a total fraud,” King continued.
Twitter immediately lit up with reports of anger and outrage from inside the convention hall.
*MUST WATCH* Gov. Chris Christie's reaction to Ted Cruz pulling the "vote your conscience" line at #RNCinCLE #Trump pic.twitter.com/7nqTmxzJah
— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) July 21, 2016
Cruz is worse than Kasich by not endorsing Trump…@newsmax @realDonaldTrump
— Michael Reagan (@ReaganWorld) July 21, 2016
Rep. Peter King to @HallieJackson: Ted Cruz is a "disgrace"
— Mark Murray (@mmurraypolitics) July 21, 2016
BREAKING: Sources with the RNC say @Tedcruz speech was 'classless.' Party officials expected him to congratulate @realDonaldTrump.
— Bill Hemmer (@BillHemmer) July 21, 2016
Cruz stays true. This is a defining moment.
— Amanda Carpenter (@amandacarpenter) July 21, 2016
Source tells @danabashcnn a state party chairman was yelling at @tedcruz so angrily that they had to be restrained. #RNCinCLE
— Katie Hinman (@khinman) July 21, 2016
From @DanaBashCNN: Some people on donor suite level so angry at @tedcruz they called him disgrace to his face; one man had to be restrained…
— Dylan Byers (@DylanByers) July 21, 2016
Has Ted Cruz committed political suicide or has he just made one of the most brilliant moves in U.S. political history?
Featured Image Mashup via YouTube And Twitter.
