GOP Show of Unity in Cleveland Tarnished by Ted Cruz Snub

GOP Show of Unity in Cleveland Tarnished by Ted Cruz Snub
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) delivers a speech on the third day of the Republican National Convention on July 20, 2016 at the Quicken Loans Arena in Cleveland, Ohio. (Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
7/21/2016
Updated:
7/21/2016

Giuliani also criticized the Black Lives Matter movement, saying, “What happened to, ‘There’s no white America, there’s no black America, there is just America?’”  

At times Giuliani spoke directly to police officers.

Immigration and Terrorism

One of Trump’s main tenets as a candidate is his hard line against immigration and terrorism.

His proposals to build a wall at the U.S.-Mexican border and mount a stronger fight against ISIS were embraced by the convention.

Addressing the Mexican border, a video told the story about border-patrol agent Brian Terry, who was shot and killed in 2010. His sister and brother, Kelly Terry-Willis and Kent Terry, spoke from the border and blamed the Obama administration’s failed policies for their sibling’s death.

“Only one candidate is serious about border security, and that’s Donald Trump,” Kent Terry said.

The video was followed by three family members—Mary Ann Mendoza, Sabine Durden, and Jamiel Shaw—who grieved the death of their children at the hands of illegal immigrants with criminal records.

“It’s time that we have an administration that cares more about Americans than about illegals,” Mendoza said.

Hillary Clinton

The topic that received the most attention was Hillary Clinton.

Most striking was the speech by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, who played the role of prosecutor, putting Clinton on trial “for her performance and her character,” to which the crowd responded, “Lock her up.”

Christie listed his grievances against Clinton, each time asking the crowd, “Guilty or not guilty?” The crowd responded with a resounding “guilty.”   

He continued by questioning her economic decisions in China, her defense of the Assad government in Syria, the Iran nuclear deal, and relations with Cuba and Russia, each time asking the same question—“Guilty or not guilty?”

After talking about international relations, he finished by indicting her for her private email server and “making our secrets vulnerable.” 

Another prominent voice opposing Clinton was former presidential candidate Ben Carson, who didn’t indict her, but drew a line between her and Lucifer, referring to her undergrad thesis on Saul Alinsky, a Chicago-based community organizer.

“[Alinsky] wrote a book called ‘Rules for Radicals,’” Carson said. “On the dedication page, it acknowledges Lucifer, the original radical who gained his own kingdom.”

Carson went on about America’s foundation in Christian principles.

“This is a nation where every coin in our pockets and every bill in our wallet says ‘In God We Trust.’ So are we willing to elect someone as president who has as their role model somebody who acknowledges Lucifer? Think about that,” he implored the booing crowd.