Planting Peace
The nonprofit Planting Peace designed this billboard to welcome people to the Republican National Convention in Cleveland.
Well, maybe. Throughout the Republican primary, both Donald Trump and Cruz took slinging mud to a level not seen in the pre-Trump era of politics. So when Cruz takes the stage at the RNC in Cleveland this week, things could get awkward.
For months, the nation watched what started as an initial bromance between Cruz and Trump devolve into name calling. The nastiness soon spilled into social media with Twitter fights between that two GOP presidential candidates. Cruz criticized Trump's wife. Then, Trump did the same. At first Cruz said he was taking the high road and not responding to Trump's (in)famous jabbing. But that all fell apart for Cruz toward the end as it became apparent the Trump train wasn't stopping until the real estate mogul became the presumptive Republican presidential nominee. By May, the writing was on the wall and Cruz dropped out of the race.
With that said, here's a look at a few of Cruz's best attempts at beating Trump at his own game.
In Des Moines, Iowa, back when Cruz still thought he had a chance, the senator said Trump had a fragile soul.
“Apparently Mr. Trump considers Megyn Kelly very, very scary. And, you know, Donald is a fragile soul,” Cruz said.
That comment came after Cruz challenged Trump, who refused to participate in a debate moderated by Kelly, to a one-on-one debate. Kelly and Trump had been feuding since the first FOX televised debates in August. It all began when Kelly questioned Trump about his history of misogynist comments. Trump later famously — and crudely — told CNN that Kelly had "blood coming out of her wherever."
Even when it became apparent that it was mathematically impossible for Cruz to win the Republican primary, he continued swinging at Trump as their feud grew even more bitter. A day before bowing out of the race, Cruz called Trump a serial philanderer.
"And he boasts about it. This is not a secret. He's proud of being a serial philanderer. I want everyone to think about your teenage kids," Cruz told a crowd in Indiana last May. "The president of the United States talks about how great it is to commit adultery. How proud he is. Describes his battles with venereal disease as his own personal Vietnam."
Later that morning, Trump alleged that Cruz's father was involved in the JFK assassination, which is obviously the adult way to respond to criticism from another candidate.
Or there's the time Cruz finally admitted that Trump was getting under his skin. It all started when an anti-Trump super pac called Make America Awesome released an ad showing Trump's wife, Melania, naked with the words: "Meet Melanie Trump. Your Next First Lady." In response, Trump retweeted an unflattering photo of Heidi next to a photo of Melania and threatened to "spill the beans" on her.
"It's not easy to tick me off. I don't get angry often. You mess with my wife, you mess with my kids and that'll do it every time. Donald, you're a sniveling coward and leave Heidi the hell alone," Cruz said while campaigning in Wisconsin.
These days, a quiet Cruz has little to say about Trump. Still, he hasn't exactly endorsed the presumptive Republican presidential nominee, either. Still, chances are Cruz will toe the party line. After all, The Donald controls all the speaking slots and Cruz is one of five out of 16 primary opponents Trump is allowing to speak.
