Rafael Edward (Ted) Cruz Strikes Fear in Hearts of Democrats, RINO Republicans: “I will tell the truth and do what I say”
Senator Ted Cruz broughthis wife and daughters to the Poinsett Club in Greenville, Friday night, to speak to and mingle with Republican women and their families.
“We are all here tonight because we are worried about the direction of our country,” he told the packed house that was so spellbound by the speaker that some forgot to eat their cheesecake and their coffee became cold.
The Cruz message was positive and sometimes humorous. “Let’s talk about what is fixing to be going right in this country, rather than what is going wrong,” he suggested.
“I make you this promise: I will tell the truth and I will do whatI say.”
Cruz raised a million dollars the day he announced his candidacy at Liberty University in Virginia. That was his goal for the first week. His campaign had raised $4 million by the end of March. During the first week of his campaign, Cruz raised more than any candidate in the history of presidential politics.
Cruz said The New York Times predicted he could not win “because the Washington elite despise him.” Ninety-five percent of the donations were $100 or less. His hope of winning the Republican nomination, he said, rests on small donations from “regular” citizens.
Heidi Nelson Cruz, his wife, with two daughters at her side, introduced the Senator. She is a petite young woman; one lady in the audience announced that she would make a beautiful First Lady.
Senator Cruz did not overlook the fact that his audience was predominantly women.
“We are thrilled to be back in South Carolina with our dear friend, the one and only Betty Poe.”
Cruz attributes much of his success to his parents. He noted that his Mother was one of 17 kids in an Irish Catholic family, who grew up in Delaware and was the first of the family to attend college.
“It is a blessing to be the son of a mother with a spine of steel and a heart of gold,” he said with obvious pride.
His father was born in Cuba and fought the dictator Batista for four years, was imprisoned and tortured. He came to the United States with $100. sewn in his underwear. He washed dishes for 50 cents an hour. He is currently pastor of a Baptist Church in Texas.
Ted was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, December 22, 1970. He graduated from Princeton University in 1992 and graduated from Harvard with a J. D., in 1995.
He worked as law clerk for Chief Justice of the United States Supreme Court William Rhenquist; associate deputy attorney general, U/ S. Department of Justice; director of the Office of Policy Planning, Federal Trade Commission; solicitor general of Texas2003-2008; elected as a Republican to the United States Senate in 2012 for a term ending January 3, 2019.
Senator Cruz is an outspoken defender of the Indiana Religious Freedom Act. He expressed outrage over opponents of the law and their behavior as “shameful” and “an assault on the First Amendment.”
Cruz likes to talk about the “promise of America,” that he describes as “tremendous opportunity,” that attracts people from all over the world.
An important part of the American promise is that “rights” come from God, not from government.
A top goal of a Cruz Administration would be to “bring back jobs, growth and opportunity,” reduce complexity of tax returns with a flat tax reported on a post card and abolish the IRS.
One of the loudest bursts of applause came when he proposed closing the IRS, padlocking the door and assigning the 90,000 employees to the southern border.
“Think about it: You are an alien crossing miles of sun baked desert, swim the Rio Grande and the first Americans you see are thousands of IRS agents.”
Cruz would institute regulatory reforms, including “the repeal of every word in Obama Care.”
He would defend constitutional rights, including religious liberty, the right to bear arms and the limitation of federal power in the 10th Amendment. He would eliminate Common Core.
“The federal government has no right to sticking their nose into education.”
Cruz believes “school choice is the civil rights issue” of the immediate future.
“We must restore American leadership in the World,” Cruz emphasized.
“Imagine America standing by Israel.”
“Imagine a Commander-in-Chief standing up to Islamic terrorists.”
“Imagine a President saying ‘no way will Iran have nuclear weapons.’”
Cruz said he is optimistic about the future and his election chances because, “all across the country, people are waking up,” and they are saying they want the truth and they want elected officials who will do what they say they will do.
“If we are going t win we must bring back to the polls those who stayed home last time.”
An audience member said she has been praying for Cruz for several years. “Without the blessings of God you are not going to make it,” she said.
Cruz responded by saying he and his wife have prayed for guidance for a long time before entering the race and the family prayed for two hours with their pastor at First Baptist Church of Houston. He said their prayer was that if they were in God’s will, He would open doors for them. If not, He would slam them shut.
What will he do to “get African-American and Hispanic votes?
“Tell them the truth. focus on opportunity and discuss the benefits of school choice.” Remind them that Democrat liberals have used them for 50 years and that Barack Obama has done nothing to help the people who elected him.”
The final question Senator Cruz was asked pertained to his plan for bringing the Tea Party into his campaign. She noted that even in Greenville County, party leaders were treating Tea Party people as enemies.
“I love the Tea Party,” Cruz said. “I wouldn’t be in the Senate without Tea Party support.”
Cruz explained that the reason Democrats and the self-appointed Republican elite fear Tea Party people is because they can’t control them. They are just concerned patriotic citizens who support The Constitution, value free market principles and value liberty.
“They don’t have a designated leader who can be bribed” or otherwise controlled by the party hacks. This terrifies Washington. They try to destroy what they can’t control.
With tongue in cheek, he said: “I can’t imagine what it would be like to be treated that way.”
He said the Washington elite put conservatives in two categories: stupid and evil. He listed a group including Dan Quayle and Sara Palin that were called stupid. Nixon and Cheney were evil.
“They have now added a new category: ‘crazy’ to describe me. It doesn’t bother me because it is not true. The left looks down on all of us. They think we need a few liberals to rule us.”
Cruz wants to reassemble the old Reagan Coalition. It involved all kinds of people “speaking for shared values.”
He said the Reagan Revolution did not come from Washington. “The reason I am optimistic is that the Reagan Revolution is happening all over again.”
Senator Cruz had no notes and no teleprompter. He simply walked and talked. This was his first official trip to the upstate. He spoke in Spartanburg earlier in the day, traveled to Columbia and spent Easter Sunday in Charleston. His organization in South Carolina is just getting started but gaining prominent supporters rapidly.
His campaign will be an uphill climb; however, thousands of unhappy Republicans, and independents, are looking for a candidate they can trust. Ted Cruz believes he is that candidate. He is hated, but so was Reagan.