Ted Cruz’s speechwriter doesn’t work for Donald Trump, so Trump can’t fire the wordsmith after Cruz drew fire for not endorsing Trump during his speech at the RNC. But then again Trump is in a very good mood this week and doesn’t seem inclined — despite his TV fame for doing so — to say “you’re fired” to anybody. After Trump’s wife Melania’s speech was criticized for having been plagiarized from a 2008 Michelle Obama speech, Trump told the speechwriter who lifted Obama’s words that “we all make mistakes.” She kept her job.
[Melania Trump’s Speech: How Obama Vegetables Got Into the Trump Soup]
It’s reasonable to assume that Trump would want to deliver a blow to Cruz’s writer too, were it within his domain. Trump has made sport of ripping into rivals and those who don’t agree with him. (See: Lyin’ Ted Cruz, Crooked Hillary, Elizabeth “Pocahontas” Warren.) But the candidate just doesn’t want any negativity this week. Trump says he reviewed Cruz’s speech two hours before he gave it. Afterwards he said it was “no big deal!” Besides Trump knows better than anyone, the only thing worse than being fired is being “booed.” And in Trump’s recounting, “Ted Cruz got booed off the stage.” In fact, Trump’s take on the problems with both his wife’s and Cruz’s speech was similar: “no big deal.” Nobody’s fired.
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!
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) July 21, 2016
