Suddenly “Lyin’ Ted” Cruz thinks Donald Trump is OK, after all. Cruz seemed to have ended his political career at the Republican Convention, telling people to “vote their conscience,” instead of voting for the party’s nominee. The crowd loudly booed. As Cruz was ending his speech, Trump entered the hall, to cheers, and Cruz just slinked away. In fact, he and his wife had to be escorted out of the hall by security.
The headlines said it all:
USA Today: After bitter battles, Ted Cruz says he will vote for Donald Trump.
Washington Examiner: Cruz caves. . .
Politico: Feeling the squeeze. . .
Washington Examiner: Cruz Supporters Alarmed. . .
Washington Post: Cruz Reverses himself. . .
Dallas Morning News: Ted Cruz backs down. . .
CNBC: Ted Cruz Caves. . .
Daily Mail: Ted Cruz reverses himself. . .
Time: . . .Despite Bitter Rivalry
CNN: . . .Cruz in a Bind
Dead Spin: Ted Cruz Planning to Cuck Himself
PoliticusUSA: Ted Cruz Just Committed Career Suicide. . .
Independent Journal Review: “Cruzers” Freaking Out. . .
MyStatesman: . . .battered by Texas Republicans. . .
BizPac Review: Cruz Supporters Worry. . .
Even after the convention, Cruz said he refused to endorse anyone who would attack his wife and father. As you might recall, a political action committee supporting Cruz’ campaign attacked Trump’s wife, showing a nude picture and asking if she was worthy of being First Lady. Trump responded by forwarding a tweet, suggesting that nobody would want to see Cruz’ wife naked.
Then, near the end of the campaign, Trump quoted a story from the National Enquirer, saying that Cruz’ father may have been involved in the assassination of President Kennedy. Cruz couldn’t take any more, and dropped out of the race.
Under the headline, “Cruz caves, endorses Trump,” the conservative Washington Examiner reported the news.
Sen. Ted Cruz announced Friday that he was voting for Donald Trump for president, ending a months-long holdout, according to multiple reports.
“After many months of careful consideration, of prayer and searching my own conscience, I have decided that on Election Day, I will vote for the Republican nominee, Donald Trump,” Cruz wrote on Facebook. “I’ve made this decision for two reasons. First, last year, I promised to support the Republican nominee. And I intend to keep my word.”
He continued, “Second, even though I have had areas of significant disagreement with our nominee, by any measure Hillary Clinton is wholly unacceptable — that’s why I have always been #NeverHillary.”
The Republican nominee never apologized for his campaign’s attacks on Cruz’s wife and father during the primary, and hasn’t become any more conservative on key policies than he was previously. . .
Cruz, who cultivated the image of a conservative firebrand who doesn’t back down under pressure, will likely disappoint some of his biggest boosters.
Steve Deace, a talk radio show host in Iowa who endorsed Cruz in the 2016 primary, predicted that endorsing Trump without anything to show for it would diminish his future presidential prospects.
Cruz had stuck to his guns under increasing pressure. But then, last week, Trump met with Cruz, saying he would support Cruz’ fight against ICANN, according to Business Insider.
On October 1, oversight of ICANN (the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers) — a non-profit organisation that manages certain internet functions — will transfer from the US government to an international consortium of stakeholders.
This has been on the books for years — but some US Republican politicians are now pushing to derail the transfer via a vote in Congress. Spearheading efforts is failed wannabe Republican presidential candidate and Texas senator Ted Cruz, who has warned gravely that “if Congress fails to act, the Obama administration intends to give away control of the internet to an international body akin to the United Nations” — with dangerous consequences for free speech and censorship online.
Trump’s campaign is backing Cruz’s attempts, with Miller saying that “the Republicans in Congress are admirably leading a fight to save the Internet this week, and need all the help the American people can give them to be successful.”
Since then, the Cruz endorsement was generally expected. In fact, the betting site, PredictIt, opened up a market in whether Cruz would endorse Trump yesterday afternoon, pricing the odds at 37 cents. The price remained there until 10am today. At the end of the day, bettors will get a dollar for their 37 cents—in one day. That’s 270% profit.
That was considered a long-shot yesterday, since there had been so much bad blood between Trump and Cruz. If you’ve forgotten, here are a few examples—video available at the link.
Plenty of Republicans have announced their support for Donald Trump after saying nasty things about him. Marco Rubio called Trump a “con man.” Chris Christie dismissed him as the “entertainer in chief.” Both are now on board. But nobody’s support for Trump seemed as unlikely as Ted Cruz’s. . .
Behold: Nine truly awful things Ted Cruz and Donald Trump have done to or said about one another:
1. Trump retweeted an unflattering photo of Cruz’s wife, Heidi, juxtaposed with his wife, Melania.
2. Trump threatened to “spill the beans” on Heidi Cruz.
3. Trump suggested that Cruz’s father may have been involved in the Kennedy assassination.
4. Cruz said Trump “slandered” his wife. And that he’s not a “servile puppy dog.”
5. Cruz called Trump a “sniveling coward.”
6. Cruz said Trump is a “pathological liar,” “utterly amoral” and a “serial philanderer.”
7. Trump breathed life into the Cruz “birther” conspiracy.
8. Trump said he wouldn’t even accept Cruz’s endorsement.
9. Trump attacked Cruz’s faith.
