On one hand, I believe him and his family to be perfectly vile people with vile political beliefs. I had zero respect for this man in any regard based on his politics and his actions.
Now I am begrudgingly forced to give him about a gram of Respect.
Why? Because after all this, he refused to endorse Trump and stated that he could not support a man who attacked both his wife and father. To stand up in front of the Republican Convention and your nation and refuse to endorse the nominee for those reasons is an act of strength and character.
I don’t know if I’d go that far. You’re supposed to dislike people who shit on you and your family in public. That merely brings him a tick or so closer to “human being.”
As William “Refrigerator” Perry once said, “You done worked yourself up to zero.”
I have a bit more admiration for him than I had, but I see it more in terms of sharp-eyed and strategic. He’s already running for the 2020 nomination and although dissing Trump is something that pissed off some Republicans short-term, what he did will play better and better with a lot of Republicans as time goes on; and underlining your differences from someone who is probably going down in flames, hard, this fall is probably good politics.
It was both smart, and principled. I hope and expect the Trump candidacy to go down in flames in the general election. Distancing yourself from the coming disaster is good strategy.
I also believe Trump to be the worst candidate for President in some decades, and unprincipled and dangerous to boot. Cruz should not endorse such a person for President. In this case, putting family and country ahead of party is both the right thing to do, and positions him for a leading role in the fallout after Trump loses 60-40%.
I hate that manipulative grandstanding Cruz more than Trump, and I see Trump’s attacks on him as getting his just desserts. Cruz became the victim of the same attacks he leveled against Obama re: birther issues. He at least saw first hand how disruptive his own party has become, and maybe that will lead to him to reconsider his actions in the future. The first step is snubbing Trump. I’m not holding my breath, but if Cruz learns from this experience, I won’t hate him as much.
Smarmy asshole does smarmy assholish thing. I am not moved.
ETA: I’m also not offended that he was an asshole to that asshole Trump. Don’t get me wrong Cruz is just clearly the type of guy to go against the grain, and smirk like hell about it.
If Trump’s policies are correct, then Republicans should support him (whether or not he’s going to lose the election.)
If Trump’s policies are ghastly, then Republicans should refuse to support him (not fall back on “he insulted my family”.)
All this shows is that Cruz will do anything to win.
Gotta say I do too. I disagree with Shodan on nearly everything, but I have to give him credit for refusing to get on board with Trump.
I think Cruz could come off smelling like a rose. Trump will be badly beaten and will be a pariah in the GOP. In just a few months, Christie will regret signing over his testicles to Trump and Cruz will be able to say I told you so.
It’s funny. All it took for us to give Chris Christie a little respect was for him to treat Obama with the sort of decency that we used to be able to expect any Governor to accord any President. It didn’t hurt that Obama was also bringing a metric fuckton of money to NJ at the time. Now that’s gone to absolute zero, or below. (I know people will say you can’t go below absolute zero, but he’s managed.) Wasn’t it Trudeau who once had a character put his manhood in a blind trust. That’s Chris Christie these days.
So, getting back to Ted Cruz. When Trump loses, nobody’s gonna say, “Gosh, if only Ted Cruz had gotten on board this could have gone the other way.”
Hopefully, as has been said, being on the receiving end of this kind of treatment will make Cruz think about the kind of politics he’s pushed. I would not, however, make my intake of oxygen contingent upon that occurring.
He is the slime ball he always was. I’d rather have the worst characterization of Trump as president than the best characterization of Cruz. Cruz is now a pariah in the GOP, if he ever again has any standing it will be in the minority party remains of the party following it’s disintegration.
Trump should be a hero to the Democratic party for exposing the Republicans for what they are. If Trump becomes president blame the Democrats, he should be a fish in a barrel for them, if they can’t win it’s their own fault for discarding all principle in order to feed their lust for power.
The fact that’s you’re torn is what I would pit. The idea that any political opponent has to be a horrible human being to the core is utterly poisonous to democracy and leads to the idiocy I see again and again where any reasonable utterance from an opponent is met with a desperate search for something vile to “balance” it with so the dehumanizing isn’t threatened.
“Oh no, Ted Cruz isn’t a lizard person with no human emotions, I must recite all his sins to wash this shameful thought from my brain.”
Cruz is just clearly the type of guy to go against the grain, and smirk like hell about it.