Introduction

The Donald Trump Reacts to Ted Cruz meme showcases a photoshopped image capturing the expressions of Donald Trump and his family during Ted Cruz's speech at the 2016 Republican National Convention.

Background

The meme is based on a photograph taken during the Republican National Convention in July 2016, where Donald Trump and his family exhibited visible displeasure as Ted Cruz, a former rival candidate, declined to endorse Trump while addressing the audience.

Where It Started

On July 20, 2016, Ted Cruz delivered a speech at the Republican National Convention, congratulating Donald Trump on his primary victory but refusing to endorse him. Instead, he urged attendees to 'vote their conscience' in the upcoming election. This moment prompted a strong reaction from the audience, which was captured by Getty Images photographer Win McNamee, showing Trump's displeasure.

Meme Evolution

The same day, Reddit user belisaurius posted McNamee's photograph to the /r/photoshopbattles subreddit. Users quickly began creating various photoshopped versions of the image, resulting in significant engagement. Within 24 hours, the thread received over 4,728 points (with 81% upvotes), 870 comments, and 70 submissions.