By Mitch McAndrew
CLEVELAND — Texas Sen. Ted Cruz’s Wednesday night speech at the Republican National Convention began with enthusiastic, drawn-out applause and an audience that hung on his every word.
But it ended with an angry shower of boos when the 2016 Iowa caucus winner refused to give his blessing to GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump.
The tension, which rose with every minute of Cruz’s speech that ticked by without a Trump endorsement, boiled over when Cruz told Republicans to “vote their conscience.”
Many Republicans view the phrase “vote your conscience” as a rallying cry for anti-Trump sentiments, said Ben Barringer, an Iowa delegate.
“Please, don’t stay home in November,” Cruz said during the speech. “Stand, and speak, and vote your conscience, vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom and to be faithful to the Constitution.”
At the end of Cruz’s speech, with the boos growing louder and louder, a portion of the crowd’s attention turned to the VIP box opposite the stage, where Trump was waiting for son Eric Trump’s speech, which immediately followed Cruz’s.
In dramatic fashion, Trump gave a thumbs up sign to the crowd, spawning a chorus of cheers that competed with the jeers aimed at Cruz.
While Cruz did not endorse Trump outright, he did tip his hat.
“I want to congratulate Donald Trump on winning the nomination last night,” he said. “And like each of you, I want to see the principles that our party believes prevail in November.”
Still, the damage was done. The lines in the party could be plainly heard, with boos, cheers, chants of “Trump, Trump, Trump” and “USA” all combined to paint a sonic picture of division.
Barringer, who supports Cruz but is “not against Trump,” said the party “just isn’t there yet.”
“Conventions are supposed to be about healing, and this was opportunity,” he said, referring to Cruz’s speech. “We may have missed it.”
Despite the uproar, the Iowa delegation was not surprised by Cruz’s non-endorsement.
Iowa delegate Matt Schultz, who chaired Cruz’s Iowa campaign during the caucuses, gave a prophetic prediction when he said Wednesday morning that Cruz would focus on his conservatism instead of Trump.
“I know Ted, and I expect him to talk about his conservative principles,” Schultz said.
Others did not expect Cruz to endorse Trump because they said it would damage his appeal.
“His allure has always been ‘Here are my principles, now I’m going to stick to them,’ ” Barringer said. “If he endorses Donald Trump tonight, all that goes out the window.”
Jeff Kaufmann, the chairman of the Iowa GOP, said the Iowa delegation was booing Cruz along with Trump supporters.
“After seeing my Iowa delegation, which is overwhelmingly Cruz-backing, reacting like they did tonight, I have no doubt we are unified,” he said.
Cruz allies filled 11 of Iowa’s 12 district-level delegates to the Republican National Convention.
Barringer said he didn’t see any Cruz-supporting members of the Iowa delegation boo during Cruz’s speech.
Kaufmann also responded to Cruz’s “vote your conscience” line, saying that the only way a Republican can vote her or his conscience is by voting against Hillary Clinton.
“There’s no way you can vote your conscience — either vote for Hillary, vote for a third party, or stay home,” he said.
After the convention session was adjourned for the night, Trump took to Twitter to address the night’s convention drama.
“Wow, Ted Cruz got booed off the stage, didn’t honor the pledge. I saw his speech two hours early but let him speak anyway. No big deal,” the tweet read.