“The only way he could manage it would be something like ‘Yes, I said Trump is a pathological liar, and he is. However, Hillary is an even *worse* pathological liar. Vote Trump!’”
No, Cruz should not say anything like that. He should say that it was a rough primary, that harsh criticisms were traded back and forth, that he vowed to fight to the bitter end.
Then he should say yesterday’s vote of 1725 delegates for Donald j Trump marks that bitter end, the official end of the nomination contest. He should say that Trump won a resounding victory yesterday and is now the undisputed nominee of our party. That we should now all put aside any bitterness from the primary contest and do everything in our power to support our nominee in his glorious fight against the evil beast to win the White House.
Your suggestions would most likely work if the neverTrumps hadn’t poisoned the well. As matters stand, if you have been angry or impatient with their divisive, childish. Hillary-enabling antics, take a back seat to the Trump delegates. They are livid, guaranteed. They view Cruz as partly-to-largely responsible for his supporters unseemly behavior.
As a result, they will watch Cruz with eagle-eyed suspicion. He won’t have the leeway to make the case you suggested. Rather, to avoid boos, he’ll have to go one of two ways. A, a straightforward Trump endorsement up front, or B, a positive message about conservatism that avoids any and all references to the primary contest.
Or so it seems to me. But this evening, Lord willing, we’ll find out for sure.