Meet Ted Cruz: Republican candidate for 2016 election

            At this point within our new year, the presidential primaries are well underway and within less than a year our nation will have a new president sitting in the White House. One of the current presidential candidates is Texas senator Ted Cruz. According to his personal website, Cruz is a “proven, passionate, effective fighter for limited government, economic growth, and the Constitution.” Aside from specific political debates, Cruz has been a proponent of personal liberty. According to his website, “Ted has been a tireless fighter for liberty his entire life because his family knows what it is like to lose it.” Having been raised by two individuals greatly affected by the freedom of liberty that America provides, as both of his parents’ families are immigrant families, Cruz has worked tirelessly to maintain that liberty. A presidential campaign has a lot of ground to cover, and a s a part of his ultimate desire to maintain liberty, Cruz has placed major focus on eight issues: Restoring and defending the constitution of America, defending the 2^nd Amendment Rights of citizens; securing our borders; defending our nation; standing with Israel; maintaining religious liberty; maintaining life, marriage and family; providing jobs and opportunity and reining in Washington.  

Restoring and defending the constitution of America

Throughout America’s recent history, issues surrounding the Constitution have been a continual struggle for those in political power, Cruz being no exception. “We need to restore the Constitution as our standard,” said Cruz on his website. “We need to protect the people by rolling back the federal government to the functions the Constitution sets out. We need to give power back to the states and the people so that we remain a land where liberty can flourish.”  

Defend the 2^nd Amendment Rights

An individual’s choice to defend him or herself with weaponry has also always been a large issue within the political realm. In regards to this issue, Cruz’s website states, “Citizens’ Second Amendment rights make us more safe, secure, and free. The Second Amendment is not simply about hunting or target practice. It’s about protecting our lives, families, and homes.” Cruz has a history of defending these rights; according to his website, he “defended 31 states in ‘District of Columbia v. Heller’ where the U.S. Supreme Court overturned a ban on firearms in a 5-4 landmark decision.” Cruz continued on his website, “when citizens cease to have the right to defend ourselves, we cease to be free. And now, more than ever, as radical Islamic terrorists seek to attack Americans on our own soil, Americans’ right to protect our families and communities is all the more critical to our safety and freedom.”  

Securing the nation’s borders

Another hot topic within the political realm is that of immigration and other issues surrounding our nation’s borders. “We need to secure the border once and for all,” said Cruz’s website. “We need to stop Obama’s amnesty and enforce the rule of law. And we need to reform legal immigration to protect American workers.” It went on to say, “It is not that we don’t know how to solve illegal immigration. What is missing is the political will to get it done. As President, Ted Cruz will do what he says. He will stop illegal immigration. He will build a wall that works, triple border security, and put in place the surveillance and biometric tracking to secure the border.” Cruz plans to end the amnesty policy of the Obama administration, end the “catch-and-release” practice, increase deportations, stop sanctuary policies and strengthen the electronic verification process. The website talks about other plans in the works, “In order to protect our national security and serve American workers, he will suspend and audit H-1B visas and halt any increase in legal immigration so long as American unemployment remains unacceptably high.”  

Defending America

Cruz firmly believes that America is a shining beacon of freedom worldwide. “The next president will have to start on day one rebuilding what (Presidents Obama and Clinton) have tried to tear down. A truly conservative foreign policy would have three simple principles: To preserve our country we need to exert leadership on the global stage, not withdraw from it, we need to fiercely defend our allies and interests, and we need to judge each challenge through the simple test of what is best for America. Because what is best for America is best for the rest of the world.” Cruz’s website states that his goals are to rebuild our military in a way that will secure our children without bankrupting them, to defeat ISIS, to not recede from our role of leadership in the world, to not withdraw from the Middle East, to repeal every word of President Obama’s dangerous Iran deal and to prioritize American national security interests in every instance.  

Stand alongside Israel.

As America has long been Israel’s ally, Israel has remained a country on the forefront of Americans’ minds. According to Cruz’s website, he believes that, “American’s security is significantly enhanced by a strong Israel.” And in order to maintain that security, Cruz’s website states his overall plan in regards to Israel consists of “recognizing Jerusalem as the eternal, undivided capital of Israel and the US embassy being moved to Israel’s capital city.” The website goes on to state goals such as “continuing to support Israel’s regional qualitative military edge and making sure that, Israel has everything it need to defend itself.” Cruz also hopes to reassess US policy towards the Palestinian Authority, move to defund the UN if it does not move to support Israel and to withdraw federal funding from American universities that boycotts Israel.  

Maintaining America’s religious freedoms

As a self-professed Christian, Cruz’s views in regards to religious freedom are stated clearly on his website: “America was founded on a revolutionary idea. Our rights do not come from government. They come from God.” The website then goes on to state that, “one day, (Cruz) will instruct the Department of Justice, the IRS, and every other federal agency that the persecution of religious liberty ends today.” Along with his strong opinion in regards to religious freedoms, Cruz also believes that, “life, marriage, and family are the fundamental building blocks of society. Marriage is a sacrament between one man and one woman.” Consequently, if elected president, Cruz plans to “instruct his Attorney General to investigate Planned Parenthood on day one. And rather than enacting policies that tear down these pillars of our society, he will work to restore a culture of life, marriage, and family.”  

Provide jobs and opportunities for all citizens

Cruz has addressed the issue of jobs and unemployment quite heavily. His website states his overall economic plan: Cruz Simple Flat Tax: “All income groups will see a double-digit increase in after-tax income. The current seven rates of personal income tax will collapse into a single low rate of 10 percent. The IRS will cease to exist as we know it, there will be zero targeting of individuals based on their faith or political beliefs, and there will be no way for thousands of agents to manipulate the system.” Regulatory Reform: Cruz wishes to pass the REINS Act, which will hold Congress accountable to vote on any major cost-inducing regulation. Cruz also plans to repeal the Obamacare act and create new reforms that make health care “personal, portable, and affordable.” He also hopes to end the EPA regulations like the “Waters of the U.S.” rule and the Clean Power Plan.” Energy Renaissance: Embracing the resources in this land- from oil to natural gas to ethanol. Cruz will also approve the Keystone Pipeline, and other similar infrastructures, and empower the private sector to create good-paying American jobs. Cruz hopes to harness our nation’s energy resources and remove federal impediments to energy exploration, development, and trade. Stable Dollar: Cruz will audit the Federal Reserve and work to obtain a rules-based monetary system. Internet Freedom: Cruz will oppose the Internet Sales Tax.  

Rein in Washington

The last main issue that Cruz includes within his overall political agenda is that of reining in politics within Washington. Cruz plans to “shrink the size and power of the federal government using the Cruz Five for Freedom plan which will eliminate the IRS, the Department of Education, The Department of Energy, The Department of Commerce, and the Department of Housing and Urban Development.” Cruz hopes to simplify all the agencies and bureaus that are currently active in government, as well as re-institute President Reagan’s Grace Commission to assess federal spending levels and reduce federal spending. Cruz’s website also states his goal to “hold Congress accountable by enacting a strong Balanced Budget Amendment and requiring that a majority of members approve any major, cost-inducing regulation.” Although Cruz does have a definite political agenda, his overall goal is simply to maintain liberty for all citizens, which he plans to do by addressing these few specific issues. Although Ted Cruz clearly has a high stance on many moral and political issues, as all politicians, he has his opponents. What is it about himself and his campaign that they are against? According to www.telegraph.co.uk, “many of those who’ve known him and worked with him claim the Republican presidential candidate is brilliant but arrogant and self-serving.” The website then continues, speaking about Cruz’s past behaviors, the website quotes an 18-year old college student Cruz saying that his overall aspirations were, “Take over the world, world domination, you know, rules everything. Rich, powerful, that sort of stuff.” The website continues on to speak about how Cruz was socially received while attending Princeton University. The website states, “Contemporaries at Princeton have described Mr. Cruz as ‘arrogant’ and ‘creepy.’ His first room-mate was Craig Mazin, who begged to be housed with someone else, anyone else. Mr. Cruz appeared to have arrived at university with his views already fully formed, and to have changed little since then.” Mr. Mazin himself is quoted on “The Telegraph” in regards to his relationship with Cruz. “I want to be clear Ted Cruz is a nightmare of a human being. I have plenty of problems with his politics but, truthfully, his personality is so awful that 99 per cent of why I hate him is just his personality. If he agreed with me on every issue I would hate him only one percent less.” Aside from Mazin, the website states that there have been others who have expressed an extreme distaste for Cruz. According to the website, “In his 20s the high-flying Mr. Cruz became an adviser on domestic policy to George W Bush during his 2000 presidential campaign. He then served as an associate deputy attorney general in the Bush administration. Did his boss like him? Not much. Mr. Bush said recently: ‘I just don’t like the guy.’ Friends of the former president said he had found Mr. Cruz to be “opportunistic” in criticizing fellow Republicans for his own gain.” Along with George W. Bush, the colleagues within the Senate appeared to dislike Cruz as well. The website states, “When Mr. Cruz reached the Senate at the age of 41 he soon made enemies on his own side. Senator John McCain, the 2008 Republican presidential nominee, called him a “wacko bird” and ‘crazy.’ Not one Republican senator has stepped up to endorse him in his presidential bid.” In specific regards to why many American citizens may dislike Cruz, the website states that, “Hard line stance on immigration has alienated some (away from Cruz). At a recent rally in Iowa Mr. Cruz encountered Ofelia Valdez, 30, who had been brought illegally from Mexico as a child. Miss Valdez had lived more than half her life in the state where she had been widely praised for her work at a charity which cares for children with special needs. She had also earned a degree in business administration. She asked Mr. Cruz whether, as he has vowed, people like her would be sent back to Mexico on his first day in office. Mr. Cruz looked her straight in the eye and told her yes.” Apparently, just as there is with any possible presidential nominee, there are many who are against Cruz, however, there are also many who are for Cruz. One must simply make a choice given the available information.