Though Sen. Ted Cruz was memorably booed during his address at the 2016 Republican National Convention for asking Republicans to “vote their conscience,” he was greeted with the most enthusiastic standing ovation of the day at the Conservative Political Action Conference.
In 2016, CPAC attendees handed Cruz an easy victory in its annual straw poll. Forty percent selected him as their preferred candidate, while only 15 percent selected President Trump.
Four months later, Cruz earned a prolonged chorus of boos from the RNC audience for failing to offer an explicit endorsement of the man he defeated so soundly at CPAC.
Thursday morning, the CPAC crowd greeted both prominent Trump adviser Kellyanne Conway and Ted Cruz with standing ovations, signaling a potential healing of the fractured conservative base.
Emily Jashinsky is a commentary writer for the Washington Examiner.
