The 2016 Presidential Candidates: Ted Cruz
Ted Cruz is junior United States Senator from Texas. In December he will turn 45 years of age and he was the first of the candidates in this series to have formally announced his campaign for President. His announcement was made first through social media and later at an event at Liberty University on March 23, 2015. He has only been a Senator since 2013 and before that he had been the Solicitor General in Texas in the administration of his fellow Republican candidate Rick Perry. Cruz is the first Cuban American to run for President of the United States, declaring his candidacy approximately three weeks before fellow Republican Marco Rubio.
Cruz's eligibility to run for President has been an issue, since he wasn't born in the United States, or even Cuba, but was in fact born in Calgary, Alberta in Canada. Some journalists and others have questioned Cruz's legal status as a natural-born citizen. But because he was a U.S. citizen at birth (his mother was a U.S. citizen who lived in the U.S. for more than 10 years as outlined by the Nationality Act of 1940), most commentators believe Cruz is eligible to serve as President. One memo from the Congressional Research Service has said:
"The weight of scholarly legal and historical opinion appears to support the notion that 'natural born Citizen' means one who is entitled under the Constitution or laws of the United States to U.S. citizenship 'at birth' or 'by birth,' including any child born 'in' the United States, the children of United States citizens born abroad, and those born abroad of one citizen parent who has met U.S. residency requirements."
This point of view is not universally held, and some proponents of the "birther" movement, including Cruz's fellow candidate Donald Trump, have stated that Cruz is not a natural born citizen and thus not eligible to run for president.
On March 14, 2013, Cruz gave the keynote speech at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C. He tied for 7th place in the 2013 CPAC straw poll on March 16, winning 4% of the votes cast. He performed even more strongly in the 2014 CPAC straw poll, coming in second with 11% behind Kentucky senator Rand Paul. In the 2015 CPAC poll, he came in third with 11.5% behind Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and Paul.
Cruz spoke at a number of events in the summer of 2013 across Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, which are early primary states, leading to speculation that he was laying the groundwork for running for President in 2016. On April 12, 2014, Cruz spoke at the Freedom Summit, an event organized by Americans for Prosperity, and Citizens United. In his speech, Cruz said that Latinos, young people and single mothers, are the people most affected by the recession, and that the Republican Party should make outreach efforts to these constituents.
Cruz announced his campaign for the presidency on March 23, 2015, at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, during the student convocation. He became the first announced major Republican presidential candidate for the 2016 campaign. Cruz successfully qualified for the first presidential debate of the election cycle, coming in 6th place in the overall list of the top 10 candidates. At the debate his performance was generally well-received. After the debate, Cruz toured southern states where he courted voters by going on bus tours. At the time many of his rivals were spending time campaigning in Iowa.
Cruz raised nearly $4 million in the first eight days after he announced his presidential campaign. 95% of the donations to Cruz's campaign came in contributions of less than $100. On April 8, 2015, it was reported that super PACs backing Cruz had raised $31 million in a week, one of the biggest fundraising surges the current presidential. In July 2015, it was reported that Farris and Dan Wilks, two billionaire brothers from Cruz's home state of Texas, had donated $15 million of the $38 million to Keep The Promise, a pro-Cruz super PAC. Within the days following the first Republican primary debate, Cruz announced in Franklin, Tennessee that his campaign had raised over $1 million in the first 100 hours. It was reported by National Journal that many donors who had supported fellow Texan politician and former Governor of Texas Rick Perry during his 2012 presidential campaign had contributed over $895,000 to the Cruz campaign.
Cruz has employed some unusual marketing tactics in the course of his campaign. On August 3, 2015, Cruz was featured in YouTube video frying bacon off the end of a semi-automatic rifle at the Central Iowa Impact Gun Range in Boone, Iowa. In the video, Cruz says "There is nothing I enjoy more than on weekends cooking breakfast with the family. Of course in Texas we cook bacon a little differently than most folks.”
In a NBC News poll released on August 9, three days following the Ohio Republican presidential debate, Cruz came in 2nd place with 13% overall, more than doubling his prior support. The most recent RCP (Real Clear Politics) average of polls has him in fourth place at 7.2% behind Donald Trump, Ben Carson and Jeb Bush.
Following are some of the political positions taken by Cruz on various issues:
Climate change: In January 2015, Cruz stated that he believes that global warming is real, but not man-made, rejecting an amendment stating that human activity significantly contributes to climate change. In a March 2015 Texas Tribune interview, Cruz questioned the credibility of environmental advocates concerned about the issue of global warming by saying, "On the global warming alarmists, anyone who actually points to the evidence that disproves their apocalyptical claims, they don’t engage in reasoned debate. What do they do? They scream, ‘You’re a denier.' They brand you a heretic. Today, the global warming alarmists are the equivalent of the flat-earthers". Cruz claims that satellite data shows no global warming has occurred in the past 17 years.
Economic Issues: Cruz opposed an unconditional increase in the debt limit. He has been a critic of most of the Obama Administration's economic policies.
Energy policy: Cruz has said that energy policy should be a key issue. He supports the Keystone pipeline (he was co-sponsor of the Keystone XL Pipeline Act, Senate Bill 1 of the 114th Congress) and supported legislation to lift the 1970 ban on crude oil exports, and abolish the ethanol mandate. Cruz has received more than US$1 million in campaign donations from the oil and gas industry since 2011. He wants Congress to approve the exportation of U.S. natural gas to World Trade Organization countries.
Environmental protection: Cruz advocates for "volunteer conservation", and criticized efforts by the federal government's Environmental Protection Agency to expand regulatory oversight on water use.
Foreign affairs: Cruz describes his foreign policy position as "somewhere in between" Rand Paul's "basically isolationist" position and John McCain's active interventionism. In April 2015, Cruz filed an amendment to the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015, which would require affirmative Congressional approval of any Iranian nuclear deal before sanctions relief can occur. In 2013, Cruz stated that America had no "dog in the fight" during the Syrian civil war. He has criticized the Obama administration's position on ISIS, stating "The president’s foreign policy team utterly missed the threat of ISIS, indeed, was working to arm Syrian rebels that were fighting side by side with ISIS". Cruz has called for bombing ISIS, but is doubtful that the United States "can tell the good guys from the bad guys". In 2014, Cruz spoke at an event held by the group In Defense of Christians (IDC). He was booed by the group after making statements considered pro-Israel. Cruz told the audience, "Those who hate Israel hate America. Those who hate Jews hate Christians. If those in this room will not recognize that, then my heart weeps.
Gun control: Cruz is a gun-rights supporter. On March 25, 2013, an announcement was made by Cruz and U.S. Senators Rand Paul and Mike Lee threatening to filibuster any legislation that would entail gun control, such as the Manchin-Toomey Amendment, which would require additional background checks on sales at gun shows. On April 17, 2013, Cruz voted against the Manchin-Toomey Amendment. He believes that service members should be better equipped to protect themselves from incidents like the Navy Yard and Fort Hood mass shootings.
Health care: Cruz is a strong critic of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which he usually refers to as "Obamacare". He has sponsored legislation that would repeal the health care reform law and its amendments. After the launch of the HealthCare.gov website, with which there were significant implementation problems, Cruz stated, "Obamacare is a disaster. It just isn't working." He called for Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to resign. In the summer of 2013, Cruz started a nationwide tour sponsored by The Heritage Foundation to promote a congressional effort to defund the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, arguing that Republicans should unite in upcoming Continuing Resolution negotiations to defund Obamacare and with regard to a potential government shutdown Cruz downplayed worries of the political risk to Republicans by citing the results of the 1996 midterm elections. On September 24, 2013, Cruz began a speech on the floor of the Senate regarding the Affordable Care Act relative to a continuing resolution designed to fund the government and avert a government shutdown. Cruz promised to keep speaking until he was "no longer able to stand". Cruz yielded the floor at noon the following day for the start of the proceeding legislative session after twenty-one hours nineteen minutes. His speech was the fourth-longest in United States Senate history. He was a major force behind the U.S. government shutdown in 2013. Cruz delivered a message on October 11, 2013 to fellow Republicans against accepting Obamacare and, describing it as a "train wreck", claimed the American people remain "energized" around the goal of gutting the law. Cruz blamed the shutdown on President Barack Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid.
Internet regulation: Cruz opposes net neutrality arguing that the Internet economy has flourished in the United States simply because it has remained largely free from government regulation. He believes regulating the Internet will stifle online innovation and create monopolies.
Minimum wage: In 2015, Cruz opposed President Obama's plan to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, stating that he believes it would cause large scale job loss. When discussing whether or not to have a minimum wage in general, Cruz stated "I think the minimum wage consistently hurts the most vulnerable."
National Security Agency: Cruz has said that the National Security Agency has not been effective in its surveillance of potential terrorists while intruding needlessly into the lives of ordinary Americans.
Abortion: Cruz is pro-life. The only exception to his pro-life views is "when a pregnancy endangers the mother's life".
Same-Sex Marriage: Cruz supports legally defined marriage as only "between one man and one woman," but believes that the legality of same-sex marriage should be left to each state to decide. On February 10, 2015, Cruz re-introduced the State Marriage Defense Act. Cruz opposes participation in gay pride marches, criticizing Dallas' Republican mayor Tom Leppert, stating "When a mayor of a city chooses twice to march in a parade celebrating gay pride that's a statement and it's not a statement I agree with." He voted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, which included provisions to extend protection to lesbians, gays, immigrants, and Native Americans. In a speech in Waukee, Iowa, Cruz said that "[t]here is a liberal fascism that is dedicated to going after believing Christians who follow the biblical teaching on marriage."
Marijuana: Cruz opposes the legalization of marijuana, but believes it should be decided at the state level.
Taxes: Cruz advocates the abolition of the IRS, and implementing a flat tax "where the average American can fill out taxes on a postcard". He has received a grade of A in 2013 from the National Taxpayers Union, a conservative taxpayers advocacy organization.
Cruz's eligibility to run for President has been an issue, since he wasn't born in the United States, or even Cuba, but was in fact born in Calgary, Alberta in Canada. Some journalists and others have questioned Cruz's legal status as a natural-born citizen. But because he was a U.S. citizen at birth (his mother was a U.S. citizen who lived in the U.S. for more than 10 years as outlined by the Nationality Act of 1940), most commentators believe Cruz is eligible to serve as President. One memo from the Congressional Research Service has said:
"The weight of scholarly legal and historical opinion appears to support the notion that 'natural born Citizen' means one who is entitled under the Constitution or laws of the United States to U.S. citizenship 'at birth' or 'by birth,' including any child born 'in' the United States, the children of United States citizens born abroad, and those born abroad of one citizen parent who has met U.S. residency requirements."
This point of view is not universally held, and some proponents of the "birther" movement, including Cruz's fellow candidate Donald Trump, have stated that Cruz is not a natural born citizen and thus not eligible to run for president.
On March 14, 2013, Cruz gave the keynote speech at the 2013 Conservative Political Action Conference in Washington, D.C. He tied for 7th place in the 2013 CPAC straw poll on March 16, winning 4% of the votes cast. He performed even more strongly in the 2014 CPAC straw poll, coming in second with 11% behind Kentucky senator Rand Paul. In the 2015 CPAC poll, he came in third with 11.5% behind Wisconsin governor Scott Walker and Paul.
Cruz spoke at a number of events in the summer of 2013 across Iowa, New Hampshire and South Carolina, which are early primary states, leading to speculation that he was laying the groundwork for running for President in 2016. On April 12, 2014, Cruz spoke at the Freedom Summit, an event organized by Americans for Prosperity, and Citizens United. In his speech, Cruz said that Latinos, young people and single mothers, are the people most affected by the recession, and that the Republican Party should make outreach efforts to these constituents.
Cruz announced his campaign for the presidency on March 23, 2015, at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia, during the student convocation. He became the first announced major Republican presidential candidate for the 2016 campaign. Cruz successfully qualified for the first presidential debate of the election cycle, coming in 6th place in the overall list of the top 10 candidates. At the debate his performance was generally well-received. After the debate, Cruz toured southern states where he courted voters by going on bus tours. At the time many of his rivals were spending time campaigning in Iowa.
Cruz raised nearly $4 million in the first eight days after he announced his presidential campaign. 95% of the donations to Cruz's campaign came in contributions of less than $100. On April 8, 2015, it was reported that super PACs backing Cruz had raised $31 million in a week, one of the biggest fundraising surges the current presidential. In July 2015, it was reported that Farris and Dan Wilks, two billionaire brothers from Cruz's home state of Texas, had donated $15 million of the $38 million to Keep The Promise, a pro-Cruz super PAC. Within the days following the first Republican primary debate, Cruz announced in Franklin, Tennessee that his campaign had raised over $1 million in the first 100 hours. It was reported by National Journal that many donors who had supported fellow Texan politician and former Governor of Texas Rick Perry during his 2012 presidential campaign had contributed over $895,000 to the Cruz campaign.
Cruz has employed some unusual marketing tactics in the course of his campaign. On August 3, 2015, Cruz was featured in YouTube video frying bacon off the end of a semi-automatic rifle at the Central Iowa Impact Gun Range in Boone, Iowa. In the video, Cruz says "There is nothing I enjoy more than on weekends cooking breakfast with the family. Of course in Texas we cook bacon a little differently than most folks.”
In a NBC News poll released on August 9, three days following the Ohio Republican presidential debate, Cruz came in 2nd place with 13% overall, more than doubling his prior support. The most recent RCP (Real Clear Politics) average of polls has him in fourth place at 7.2% behind Donald Trump, Ben Carson and Jeb Bush.
Following are some of the political positions taken by Cruz on various issues:
Climate change: In January 2015, Cruz stated that he believes that global warming is real, but not man-made, rejecting an amendment stating that human activity significantly contributes to climate change. In a March 2015 Texas Tribune interview, Cruz questioned the credibility of environmental advocates concerned about the issue of global warming by saying, "On the global warming alarmists, anyone who actually points to the evidence that disproves their apocalyptical claims, they don’t engage in reasoned debate. What do they do? They scream, ‘You’re a denier.' They brand you a heretic. Today, the global warming alarmists are the equivalent of the flat-earthers". Cruz claims that satellite data shows no global warming has occurred in the past 17 years.
Economic Issues: Cruz opposed an unconditional increase in the debt limit. He has been a critic of most of the Obama Administration's economic policies.
Energy policy: Cruz has said that energy policy should be a key issue. He supports the Keystone pipeline (he was co-sponsor of the Keystone XL Pipeline Act, Senate Bill 1 of the 114th Congress) and supported legislation to lift the 1970 ban on crude oil exports, and abolish the ethanol mandate. Cruz has received more than US$1 million in campaign donations from the oil and gas industry since 2011. He wants Congress to approve the exportation of U.S. natural gas to World Trade Organization countries.
Environmental protection: Cruz advocates for "volunteer conservation", and criticized efforts by the federal government's Environmental Protection Agency to expand regulatory oversight on water use.
Foreign affairs: Cruz describes his foreign policy position as "somewhere in between" Rand Paul's "basically isolationist" position and John McCain's active interventionism. In April 2015, Cruz filed an amendment to the Iran Nuclear Agreement Review Act of 2015, which would require affirmative Congressional approval of any Iranian nuclear deal before sanctions relief can occur. In 2013, Cruz stated that America had no "dog in the fight" during the Syrian civil war. He has criticized the Obama administration's position on ISIS, stating "The president’s foreign policy team utterly missed the threat of ISIS, indeed, was working to arm Syrian rebels that were fighting side by side with ISIS". Cruz has called for bombing ISIS, but is doubtful that the United States "can tell the good guys from the bad guys". In 2014, Cruz spoke at an event held by the group In Defense of Christians (IDC). He was booed by the group after making statements considered pro-Israel. Cruz told the audience, "Those who hate Israel hate America. Those who hate Jews hate Christians. If those in this room will not recognize that, then my heart weeps.
Gun control: Cruz is a gun-rights supporter. On March 25, 2013, an announcement was made by Cruz and U.S. Senators Rand Paul and Mike Lee threatening to filibuster any legislation that would entail gun control, such as the Manchin-Toomey Amendment, which would require additional background checks on sales at gun shows. On April 17, 2013, Cruz voted against the Manchin-Toomey Amendment. He believes that service members should be better equipped to protect themselves from incidents like the Navy Yard and Fort Hood mass shootings.
Health care: Cruz is a strong critic of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, which he usually refers to as "Obamacare". He has sponsored legislation that would repeal the health care reform law and its amendments. After the launch of the HealthCare.gov website, with which there were significant implementation problems, Cruz stated, "Obamacare is a disaster. It just isn't working." He called for Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to resign. In the summer of 2013, Cruz started a nationwide tour sponsored by The Heritage Foundation to promote a congressional effort to defund the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, arguing that Republicans should unite in upcoming Continuing Resolution negotiations to defund Obamacare and with regard to a potential government shutdown Cruz downplayed worries of the political risk to Republicans by citing the results of the 1996 midterm elections. On September 24, 2013, Cruz began a speech on the floor of the Senate regarding the Affordable Care Act relative to a continuing resolution designed to fund the government and avert a government shutdown. Cruz promised to keep speaking until he was "no longer able to stand". Cruz yielded the floor at noon the following day for the start of the proceeding legislative session after twenty-one hours nineteen minutes. His speech was the fourth-longest in United States Senate history. He was a major force behind the U.S. government shutdown in 2013. Cruz delivered a message on October 11, 2013 to fellow Republicans against accepting Obamacare and, describing it as a "train wreck", claimed the American people remain "energized" around the goal of gutting the law. Cruz blamed the shutdown on President Barack Obama and Senate Majority Leader Harry M. Reid.
Internet regulation: Cruz opposes net neutrality arguing that the Internet economy has flourished in the United States simply because it has remained largely free from government regulation. He believes regulating the Internet will stifle online innovation and create monopolies.
Minimum wage: In 2015, Cruz opposed President Obama's plan to raise the federal minimum wage to $10.10 per hour, stating that he believes it would cause large scale job loss. When discussing whether or not to have a minimum wage in general, Cruz stated "I think the minimum wage consistently hurts the most vulnerable."
National Security Agency: Cruz has said that the National Security Agency has not been effective in its surveillance of potential terrorists while intruding needlessly into the lives of ordinary Americans.
Abortion: Cruz is pro-life. The only exception to his pro-life views is "when a pregnancy endangers the mother's life".
Same-Sex Marriage: Cruz supports legally defined marriage as only "between one man and one woman," but believes that the legality of same-sex marriage should be left to each state to decide. On February 10, 2015, Cruz re-introduced the State Marriage Defense Act. Cruz opposes participation in gay pride marches, criticizing Dallas' Republican mayor Tom Leppert, stating "When a mayor of a city chooses twice to march in a parade celebrating gay pride that's a statement and it's not a statement I agree with." He voted against reauthorizing the Violence Against Women Act, which included provisions to extend protection to lesbians, gays, immigrants, and Native Americans. In a speech in Waukee, Iowa, Cruz said that "[t]here is a liberal fascism that is dedicated to going after believing Christians who follow the biblical teaching on marriage."
Marijuana: Cruz opposes the legalization of marijuana, but believes it should be decided at the state level.
Taxes: Cruz advocates the abolition of the IRS, and implementing a flat tax "where the average American can fill out taxes on a postcard". He has received a grade of A in 2013 from the National Taxpayers Union, a conservative taxpayers advocacy organization.