Former House Speaker John Boehner John Andrew BoehnerLongtime House parliamentarian to step down Five things we learned from this year's primaries Bad blood between Pelosi, Meadows complicates coronavirus talks MORE (R-Ohio) summed up his reaction to Sen. Ted Cruz Rafael (Ted) Edward CruzMurkowski: Supreme Court nominee should not be taken up before election Battle lines drawn on precedent in Supreme Court fight Sunday shows - Ruth Bader Ginsburg's death dominates MORE's controversial Republican National Committee speech in three words, according to a former aide: "Lucifer is back."

@JakeSherman @SpeakerBoehner's remark last night after Cruz speech: "Lucifer is back." — David Schnittger (@OhSchnitt) July 21, 2016

David Schnittger, a longtime Boehner John Andrew BoehnerLongtime House parliamentarian to step down Five things we learned from this year's primaries Bad blood between Pelosi, Meadows complicates coronavirus talks MORE aide, tweeted the former Speaker's response after Cruz declined to endorse Trump during a prime-time convention speech Wednesday night.

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“To those listening, please, don’t stay home in November,” Cruz said in Cleveland. “Stand and speak and vote your conscience, vote for candidates up and down the ticket who you trust to defend our freedom and to be faithful to our Constitution.”

The speech drew jeers from convention attendees who wanted Cruz to get behind the GOP's presidential nominee.

Cruz on Thursday defended his refusal to endorse Trump, pointing out the businessman's personal attacks on Cruz's father and wife.

“I am not in the habit of supporting people who attack my wife and attack my father,” Cruz said Thursday morning. "Neither he nor his campaign has taken back a word of what was said about my family."

Boehner earlier this year called Cruz "Lucifer in the flesh" at a speaking event at Stanford University.

"I have Democrat friends, and I have Republican friends. But I have never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch my entire life,” he added at the time.

Cruz repeatedly clashed with Boehner while both men were in office, most notably during the 2013 shutdown of the federal government over ObamaCare.