TX-Sen: President Trump pumps up his base for 'Beautiful Ted' Cruz at packed MAGA rally in Texas

President Donald Trump fired up his supporters in the Lone Star State at the "Make America Great Again" rally Monday night, where he backed "Beautiful Ted" Cruz, who's up for re-election Nov. 6.

"Nobody has helped me more with your tax cuts, with your regulation, with all of the things that we're doing, including military and our vets, than Sen. Ted Cruz. Nobody," Trump said.

It was a packed house at the Toyota Center in Houston where Trump praised the Texas senator for working closely with him on tax cuts and regulations.

Cruz is facing a challenge from Democratic Rep. Beto O'Rourke for the Senate seat in the midterm elections. He has a 7-point lead in the polls.

What did Trump say about his differences with Cruz in 2016?

The president, who called Cruz "a really good friend of mine," assured rallygoers that the pair's differences during the 2016 presidential election are no longer an issue.

"In just 15 days, the people in Texas are going to re-elect a man who has become a really good friend of mine," Trump told the crowd. "You know we had our little difficulties, but actually, if you remember, in the beginning, it was a love fest."

Trump had nicknamed Cruz "Lyin' Ted" during the presidential primaries.

"It got nasty," he continued. "Then it ended.

"He [Cruz] defended your jobs and he defended your borders. He defends your families," the president continued. "He defends your faith and we are defending together with a lot of other great Republicans — your freedom."

Trump, who's given Cruz the new nickname "Beautiful Ted," urged voters to get out and cast their ballots for the incumbent senator and other Texas Republicans in early voting, which had begun in Texas.

What did Cruz say?

The senator reiterated the stark differences he has with O'Rourke on border control, immigration, taxes, and gun control. He called O'Rourke "far too liberal for Texas."

Finally, at the end of his speech, Cruz announced his support for Trump in 2020.

"I'm going to make a prediction to every person here: In 2020, Donald Trump will be overwhelmingly re-elected as president of the United States," he said. "I look forward to campaigning alongside him in 2020."

What else?

Trump pointed out that "everything is bigger in Texas," including the number of people who attended the rally.

Houston Police Chief Art Acevedo estimated that the size of the crowd was between 18,000 and 19,000 with an additional 3,000 watching on big screens outside the building, according to the Houston Chronicle.