Maybe it was in part to magnanimously let Cruz blow off steam. He wanted to, so Trump granted it. Maybe it was in order to make Trump look better, not worse — to show that Trump isn’t going to bite everybody’s head off forever. If they want to wallow in their own hells of hate, it won’t be Donald’s fault.
Yes, Cruz was cleverly used a poster boy for what the GOPe did become. Trump wisely let Cruz have his 15 minutes...now it would be stupid of Cruz not endorse Trump even though he is stumping for the 2020 pres run — which he would not get unless by default since the lawless RATS cannot produce a candidate that does not stand for the DemocRat Mafia.
So in reality Cruz punked himself which Trump and his advisors probably just smiled at each other.
I don’t buy the “entrance” theory because Trump came to hear Eric and St. Ted ran long.