Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump told CBS News it was a "beautiful thing" to see Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) get booed off the stage Wednesday at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland when he did not endorse Trump for the presidency.
Cruz, who finished with the second most delegates in a bitter primary fight, congratulated Trump for winning the nomination but never mentioned him again in his RNC speech. He implored people to "vote your conscience," and he was loudly booed as he concluded his address without endorsing Trump.
The uproar overshadowed Indiana Gov. Mike Pence’s acceptance of the vice presidential nomination later in the evening. Journalist Ted Koppel noted to Trump that Wednesday night was supposed to be "Mike Pence’s night."
"Instead, what’s everybody talking about the next day?" Koppel asked.
"That Ted Cruz got booed off the stage," Trump said. "I think that’s a good thing as far as I’m concerned. You know, I let him speak. I gave him a home because I defeated him soundly, I mean, by millions and millions of votes, wasn’t like it was close ... Frankly, he was fine, nothing earth-shaking, and the arena erupted in boos toward the end of his speech, because they saw he wasn’t going to endorse, and I thought that was a beautiful thing."
Trump added it was also "beautiful" because it demonstrated unity.
"I think the party’s very unified," he said.
Toward the end of the primary season, the Trump campaign mocked the looks of Cruz’s wife and charged that his father was involved in the assassination of John F. Kennedy, leading Cruz to call him a "pathological liar." Cruz defended his decision on Thursday to not follow the GOP pledge to back the nominee, saying it was abrogated when his family was personally attacked.