As noted in a post last evening, I loath Ted Cruz. At the same time I have to applaud his refusal to endorse Donald Trump and his attempt to remind those gathered at the Republican convention in Cleveland that principles do matter. Granted, I may not agree with Cruz's principles, but at least he has some motivation other than the mere self-promotion, narcissim and egomania that motivate Donald Trump. The New York Times looks at more of the blow back swirling around Cruz for not kissing The Donald's ring. Here are highlights:
The Republican convention erupted into tumult on Wednesday night as the bitter primary battle between Donald J. Trump and Senator Ted Cruz reignited unexpectedly, crushing hopes that the party could project unity.
In the most electric moment of the convention, boos and jeers broke out as it became clear that Mr. Cruz — in a prime-time address from center stage — was not going to endorse Mr. Trump. It was a pointed snub on the eve of Mr. Trump’s formal acceptance speech.
Mr. Cruz was all but drowned out as he asked for God’s blessing on the country and left the stage, while security personnel escorted his wife, Heidi, out of the hall. One delegate yelled “Goldman Sachs!” at her — a reference to the company that has employed her, a job that Mr. Trump attacked during the primaries.
A short while later, Mr. Cruz faced insults as he made his way down a corridor — one woman yelled “Traitor!” When he tried to enter the convention suite of the Las Vegas casino magnate Sheldon Adelson, he was turned away.
“I’ve seen some crazy things,” said Brandon Bell, the chairman of the Rhode Island Republican Party, who was still stunned as he absorbed what had happened on the convention floor. “I don’t think this is going to play well.”
Mr. Cruz, who has all but declared that he wants to run for president again in 2020, especially angered Republican leaders who had been counting on him to keep his pledge that he would support the eventual nominee, a vow that other leading Republican contenders also made last fall.
Trump had been unhappy with the text of Mr. Cruz’s speech but held out for the remote possibility that Mr. Cruz would make a last-minute endorsement.
When none arrived, and with Mr. Cruz sounding like a nominee-in-waiting, Mr. Trump grew impatient with the stubbornness of his rival. Gov. Chris Christie, a close ally to Mr. Trump, could be seen shaking his head watching Mr. Cruz go on, just before Mr. Trump made his unplanned entrance into the hall.
Convention organizers were furious at the length of Mr. Cruz’s speech. He was originally allotted 12 minutes, but planners made a late decision to allocate 20 minutes instead.
The rumpus on the floor, which broke out shortly before 10 p.m., captured a reality that Republicans had hoped to minimize: that significant factions of the party remain hostile to Mr. Trump, while his own base of supporters are fervent and unyielding.
[T]he scene that will be remembered for years is the split screen image of Mr. Cruz, seemingly stunned on the stage as the boos grew, and a scowling Mr. Trump dramatically entering the arena to wrest back control of his convention.
When I see Trump supporters I am reminded of the fervent supporters of Adolph Hitler in the 1930's. The mindsets of both groups are the same, motivated in particular by bigotry and xenophobia. Things turned out badly for Germany and the world and I fear the same will occur if Trump is not defeated in November.
No comments:
Post a Comment