WOW! POLITICAL SUICIDE! TED CRUZ REFUSES TO ENDORSE TRUMP – CROWD BOOS HIM OFF STAGE

[Jazzhead]

Interesting that you think requesting people to "vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom, and to be faithful to the constitution" is in opposition to voting for Trump.  I did not read it that way.

Exactly.  In no way did he state opposition to voting for Trump.  Indeed, he explicitly endorsed many of Trump's themes, such as building "the wall".   The speech could have unified the party, but the booing Trumpsters wouldn't let it.   They demanded fealty, not support.   

[Bigun]

The bolded above WAS NOT in the speech Cruz submitted to the RNC at 8:20 last night.   You're prevaricating.

flat out lying!

[Poser]

Cruz opposed no one. He said we should vote our conscious. Vote for someone we can trust. Do you seriously think he was endorsing Hillary?

Honestly I do not know why Trump fans choose to interpret his comments the way they do.

Or maybe I do know why.

In my opinion, you do not.

Speaking at a political convention and not publicly endorsing the candidate is a very clear message that you do not endorse the candidate. Once the nominee is chosen, the only purpose of  the convention is to show unity and gain voters from those undecided people watching on television. The delegates of the convention knew that immediately. So did the viewing public.

You may not know why they interpreted his comments that way, but the fact remains that they did. Since they interpreted it that way in vast numbers, you are the outlier rather than the norm. Denying the results does not change them.

Ted hurt himself last night. That is very disappointing to me because he is the politician who best mirrors my values. I'm afraid that I will have to look elsewhere in the future. I was hoping he would use his position to push Trump in my direction for the foreseeable future. I fear that anything he has to say now will be dismissed. It's sad, really.

[Resp3]

Honestly I do not know why Trump fans choose to interpret his comments the way they do.

Or maybe I do know why.

Trump fans are simply parroting the CNN liberals who were "shocked" at Ted's refusal to endorse that democrat.

There really is very little difference between the objectives of the liberals who hate Sen. Cruz and the Trumpanzees who hate Sen. Cruz.

[WAC]

From the end of Cruz' speech:
http://www.rollcall.com/news/politics/transcript-ted-cruz-convention-speech

Yes, but his audience of thousands of  Trump Nominee supporters were there to officially declare Trump the winner.........and those who were speakers to support and endorse the winner. The whole idea of the Convention is to do just that and unify the party.......it's not what Cruz said.......it's what he failed to say that has everybody's pants in a knot.......and rightfully so.

Further those people weren't there to be "schooled" by Cruz on how to vote.....they already made that choice.

[skeeter]

The rain on the Trump parade was orchestrated by the Trump people. Trump had a copy of the speech 2 hrs before it was given. He knew what was going to be said and then at just the "right time" Trump shows up and the NY delegation starts yelling. Trump gets to pretend he's the injured party and Sen Cruz is so "bad" for not bowing down to him, or honoring a pledge neither party said they would.

Trump is probably going to lose because he doesn't have the capacity to make his opponents allies. His base instinct is to dominate and make everyone subservient to hm. There is a group within the Pub party that will not surrender their values and in the end they will never support someone who insists that they do.

It did strongly resemble another Trump media charade.

And all the usual characters are falling right in line with the dialogue.

[240B]

As far as I can tell, and my access to information is currently limited, Ted did not say anything directly negative against Trump. But he also did not say anything directly negative against Hillary.

He seemed to just throw his hands up, shrug his shoulders, and say, Hey! You guys didn't pick me, so now I don't care who you vote for. Do what you want. I don't care.

Vote your conscience! (whatever that means?)

I don't care who you are. I don't care what the reasons are. That was very weird.

It would have been much better if he had just found a hole to hide in to sulk, and just stay out of it. Like all the old-timey establishment candidates did.

[Silver Pines]

Listening to the radio...Cruz's remarks this morning at, I believe, a breakfast with the Texas delegation:

"That pledge to support the nominee was voided when it became personal, when Donald Trump attacked my wife and my father."

"In no way am I obligated to come to heel like a servile puppy and support a man who attacks my wife and father."

Damn right.

[catfish1957]

Yes, but his audience of thousands of  Trump Nominee supporters were there to officially declare Trump the winner.........and those who were speakers to support and endorse the winner. The whole idea of the Convention is to do just that and unify the party.......it's not what Cruz said.......it's what he failed to say that has everybody's pants in a knot.......and rightfully so.

Further those people weren't there to be "schooled" by Cruz on how to vote.....they already made that choice.

Sad that we have allowed a buffoon to make the party of Reagan into an WWE organization and event.   When this fixation with reality TV politics finally ends, Cruz will be the grownup who returns conservative values to the party.

[WAC]

Speaking at a political convention and not publicly endorsing the candidate is a very clear message that you do not endorse the candidate. Once the nominee is chosen, the only purpose of  the convention is to show unity and gain voters from those undecided people watching on television. .......The delegates of the convention knew that immediately. So did the viewing public.

Yes they did....and it's a dang shame those who oppose Trump keep spewing that these delegates didn't get what Cruz was saying.......they certainly did.

[Smokin Joe]

Having grown children, Trump has made them proxies for the campaign. There is no, "the kids are off-limits" here. But there is another element at play. Trump, being in the evening of his days, is looking for legacy. He seeks to establish the Trump name alongside Bush and Kennedy. We see this thought pattern emerging among Trump sycophants, "I'd love to work for Eric and Ivanka," etc. Naturally this transfers to the political realm as well.

Weren't those the kids who couldn't vote for Daddy because the ink wasn't dry on their paperwork coming over from the Democrat Party or something like that?

[Resp3]

In my opinion, you do not.

Speaking at a political convention and not publicly endorsing the candidate is a very clear message that you do not endorse the candidate. Once the nominee is chosen, the only purpose of  the convention is to show unity and gain voters from those undecided people watching on television. The delegates of the convention knew that immediately. So did the viewing public.

You may not know why they interpreted his comments that way, but the fact remains that they did. Since they interpreted it that way in vast numbers, you are the outlier rather than the norm. Denying the results does not change them.

Ted hurt himself last night. That is very disappointing to me because he is the politician who best mirrors my values. I'm afraid that I will have to look elsewhere in the future. I was hoping he would use his position to push Trump in my direction for the foreseeable future. I fear that anything he has to say now will be dismissed. It's sad, really.

Honestly; don't you admire a man who entered the Lions Den to accept his "punishment" for coming in second? Don't you admire a man who stood up for his convictions? Or would you rather see Ted flip flop as Trump has done and endorsed that democrat?

Cruz could have stayed home and not spoke at the Convention. But that would have harmed him far greater as he would have been considered as a weak loser. It took great courage for Cruz to face his enemies (Trumpanzees) and take their attacks.

[Poser]

Listening to the radio...Cruz's remarks this morning at, I believe, a breakfast with the Texas delegation:

"That pledge to support the nominee was voided when it became personal, when Donald Trump attacked my wife and my father."

"In no way am I obligated to come to heel like a servile puppy and support a man who attacks my wife and father."

Damn right.

Exactly right. He has no reason to support Trump.  Butt... He could have kept his mouth shut and showed some class. He chose not to. That explains the title of this thread.

[thackney]

Speaking at a political convention and not publicly endorsing the candidate is a very clear message that you do not endorse the candidate. Once the nominee is chosen, the only purpose of  the convention is to show unity and gain voters from those undecided people watching on television. The delegates of the convention knew that immediately. So did the viewing public.

You may not know why they interpreted his comments that way, but the fact remains that they did. Since they interpreted it that way in vast numbers, you are the outlier rather than the norm. Denying the results does not change them.

Ted hurt himself last night. That is very disappointing to me because he is the politician who best mirrors my values. I'm afraid that I will have to look elsewhere in the future. I was hoping he would use his position to push Trump in my direction for the foreseeable future. I fear that anything he has to say now will be dismissed. It's sad, really.

So, do you have the same criticism of Reagan for his 1976 speech after Ford was nominated?

https://reaganlibrary.archives.gov/archives/reference/8.19.76.html

[skeeter]

In my opinion, you do not.

Speaking at a political convention and not publicly endorsing the candidate is a very clear message that you do not endorse the candidate. Once the nominee is chosen, the only purpose of  the convention is to show unity and gain voters from those undecided people watching on television. The delegates of the convention knew that immediately. So did the viewing public.

You may not know why they interpreted his comments that way, but the fact remains that they did. Since they interpreted it that way in vast numbers, you are the outlier rather than the norm. Denying the results does not change them.

Ted hurt himself last night. That is very disappointing to me because he is the politician who best mirrors my values. I'm afraid that I will have to look elsewhere in the future. I was hoping he would use his position to push Trump in my direction for the foreseeable future. I fear that anything he has to say now will be dismissed. It's sad, really.

Its interesting how different people view the same event. Because of his speech last night and his refusal to compromise on principle to me Cruz has immensely enhanced his reputation and value as a representative in the Washington DC cesspool.

I wish I was a Texan so I could vote for his re-election to the senate.

My advise to Trump supporters would be to grow a set. A thin skinned lot they turned out to be.

[Smokin Joe]

Last I checked, this is a republican primary, not a vote for pastor.  If we eliminated all congresspeople who have been divorced, DC would be empty.  The fact that everyone would like their candidate to be pure as driven snow is a given - its NOT the outcome we got.

By golly, you're right! A sacred vow is just not the same as some mangy ol' political pledge made in an election year.

[ABX]

The political suicide we saw last night was of an entire party. We witnessed the death of the values based Republican Party last night. The final nail was when gown men were threatening Heidi Cruz to the point she had to walk out with armed security. This is now a party of mob rule, a party that booed the phrase 'voting your values', a party that booed 'voting for the Constitution', a party that booed when Cruz said " fight for freedom, to protect our God-given rights" , a party that booed 'Cast aside anger for love', a party that even booed when Cruz said "God Bless America". This split has been a long time coming. Even if you aren't a Ted Cruz fan, you owe him a debt of gratitude for exposing that.

[WAC]

Sad that we have allowed a buffoon to make the party of Reagan into an WWE organization and event.   When this fixation with reality TV politics finally ends, Cruz will be the grownup who returns conservative values to the party.

Well Reagan was a Hollywood Star so that is just what it is...........and that's not going to change as the younger generations are fully sold on hype, excitement, entertainment, and someone who can raise the temperature in the room......most politicians today are understanding this regardless if it's the way to go or not........the same can be said of the churches today....many are all show and action....anything less than that is not in pace with contemperary society as it is today.

[bilo]

Interesting analysis. I agree. Cruz was grandstanding and tried to grab the focus at the end of a race that he had lost. He should have been more gracious and humble. Going down the road he did at the GOP convention, which is meant to unify factions, was a fatal mistake.

I couldn't disagree more.

Sen Cruz was put in a position in which he was given no choice, but to take the position he did. It is the victor's responsibility to make peace with his opponent. Trump could have unified the party very easily by publicly apologizing for all the crude behavior and lies he perpetuated. He didn't instead when Sen Cruz spoke at the convention he orchestrated a demonstration in order to diminish Sen Cruz. In the end Trump will suffer the cost of his hubris. Sen Cruz took the high road last night and over time people will respect him for it. 

[etcb]

To paraphrase Rush Limbaugh, Ted Cruz is living rent free in Trump's head.  Regardless of what transpired during the primary, Trump has the nomination and his opponent is Hillary Clinton, not Ted Cruz.  I can't understand how he and his supporters could think that destroying Senator Cruz would benefit them in a race with Sec. Clinton.  Senator Cruz could disappear in the next five minutes and that would not give Mr. Trump one more vote. 

[Night Hides Not]

It did strongly resemble another Trump media charade.

And all the usual characters are falling right in line with the dialogue.

Hillary and her allies better be prepared. While she'll have a billion bucks to spend on negative ads, Trump knows how to dominate the media.

IMO, Cruz's fatal error was getting into the mud with Trump. His speech last night is a recognition that Senator Cruz learned his lesson.

[oldmomster]

By golly, you're right! A sacred vow is just not the same as some mangy ol' political pledge made in an election year.

did you miss the part about Trump winning? 

whether or not we agree with his morals?  when we are faced with a dem'RAT who called off a rescue team and let Americans die?  when a dem'RAT president will be flying refugees by the thousands and settling them in OUR small midwest towns since the cities are already ruined by home-grown blm terrorists?

you're right - my priorities are just so screwed up that I would place the safety of my children ahead of the hope that sometime in the not too distant future we might MIGHT get the perfect candidate.  I give - you're right - I'll just stay home and not vote at all.  You convinced me.  Thanks.

[Smokin Joe]

Interesting that you think requesting people to "vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom, and to be faithful to the constitution" is in opposition to voting for Trump.  I did not read it that way.

Usually people are most conflicted when their actions do not conform to their innermost beliefs. That makes them unhappy, angry, even. They really, really hate being reminded of that, too. How many Trump supporters support Trump only to try to keep Hillary out of office, despite polls which indicated he would lose to her, because he was presented as a "winner"? Maybe they aren't so sure, now.

[EasyAce]

Sen Cruz was put in a position in which he was given no choice, but to take the position he did. It is the victor's responsibility to make peace with his opponent. Trump could have unified the party very easily by publicly apologizing for all the crude behavior and lies he perpetuated. He didn't instead when Sen Cruz spoke at the convention he orchestrated a demonstration in order to diminish Sen Cruz. In the end Trump will suffer the cost of his hubris. Sen Cruz took the high road last night and over time people will respect him for it.

Indeed. Donaldus Minimus should be grateful that Mr. Cruz didn't do what he'd have been wholly justified
in doing as regards any expected endorsement of a man who insulted his wife and accused his father
of being part of a presidential assassination. Mr. Cruz would have been within all rights to tell Donaldus
Minimus, "Pick up your marbles and get the f@ck out of my face and don't come back." The high road
merely ennobled Mr. Cruz and was far more than Donaldus Minimus deserves.

[Poser]

Honestly; don't you admire a man who entered the Lions Den to accept his "punishment" for coming in second? Don't you admire a man who stood up for his convictions? Or would you rather see Ted flip flop as Trump has done and endorsed that democrat?

Cruz could have stayed home and not spoke at the Convention. But that would have harmed him far greater as he would have been considered as a weak loser. It took great courage for Cruz to face his enemies (Trumpanzees) and take their attacks.

No. I don't admire his actions. Rather, I admire the actions of Ronald Reagan when faced with the same situation.