At the Republican convention of 2012, Chris Christie gave the keynote speech. A lot of people knocked it by saying, “He didn’t talk about Romney!” I defended the speech, on many grounds. One was, “This is the Republican convention. The GOP is a big party, with millions upon millions of people in it. There are plenty of speeches about Romney. The convention does not need to be a four-day exaltation of the nominee, personally. You can throw some ideas and other stuff in there. Won’t kill you.”
‐For a brief period, Paul Ryan said, “Vote your conscience.” Then he adopted a new line. Ted Cruz evidently prefers the previous line.
‐Cruz said,
We deserve leaders who stand for principle. Who unite us all behind shared values. Who cast aside anger for love. That is the standard we should expect from everybody.
And, to those listening, please don’t stay home in November. If you love our country and love our children as much as you do, stand, and speak, and vote your conscience. Vote for candidates up and down the ticket whom you trust to defend our freedom, and to be faithful to the Constitution.
Hate speech?
‐It tells you something about the new GOP that the word “conscience” is radioactive.
‐Trump fans could easily say, “My conscience tells me to vote for Trump because he will defend our freedom and be faithful to the Constitution.” Do they?
‐The sound of Trump delegates booing Cruz was some of the most beautiful music I have heard.
‐According to reports, Cruz was blocked from donor suites. Just like we Trumpkins (!) have always said: Never trust the “donor class.”
‐For reasons of personal security, Heidi Cruz had to be hustled out of the arena. This is supposed to be America, you know, not Nuremberg.
‐Cruz’s speech contained no lines from Michelle Obama. One possible reason for Trumpite upset?
‐A prediction: Trump will be sensational tonight. He is a performer. And performers perform. This is a big moment. It should be very interesting. I suspect Trump will make effective use of the Cruz thing. He certainly should.
Onward (if not upward).