Tag Archives: Ted Cruz

Brilliant Attorney Ted Cruz Can’t Figure Out How to Follow the Law

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Multiple outlets are reporting that Sen. Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) failed to report as much as $500,000 in loans from Goldman Sachs that may have been used to help finance his longshot  2012 Senate campaign.  Cruz is downplaying this as an “inadvertent” filing error, but part of his Senate campaign was premised on his anti-Wall Street rhetoric and the fact that he was getting preferential loans from a Wall Street giant (that also employed his wife) would not have fit well into that narrative.  Cruz explains one of the loans as a “standard margin loan” that you would have with any brokerage account.  Red calls BS on that one.  There is nothing “standard” about margin loans and they are the easiest way for the average investor to get in trouble and rack up big losses.  Red sees potential trouble for the high-flying Tea Party darling in the weeks running up to Iowa.  Ted’s “nothing to see here, move along” explanation doesn’t pass the smell test and how did the oh-so-brilliant attorney from Texas not manage to follow disclosure laws which are pretty damn clear on their face.  Isn’t interpreting law supposed to be his strong suit?

Is it Just Red, or is Ted Cruz’s New Ad Just Plain Weird?

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Sen. Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) launched a new TV ad in New Hampshire featuring hordes of well-dressed “accountants and lawyers” invading the US across what is supposed to be the Rio Grand and a border fence (notably, no one is seen actually scaling the fence).  The focus of the ad is a claim that if the aforementioned hordes of accountants, lawyers and presumably other professionals were illegally crossing the border and driving down salaries for those occupations, then the swells would be up in arms about illegal immigration.  First, this presupposes that illegal immigration has actually suppressed wages and implies that GOP policies which have helped to keep real incomes flat ever since Reagan’s inauguration have nothing to do with the problem.  Second, it’s just plain weird.

Was He Lying Then or is He Lying Now?

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Sen. Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) is now facing his own problem on immigration and it does not stem from his sometimes questioned Constitutional qualification to hold the highest office in the land.  Rather, Cruz’s position on a path to legalization for undocumented aliens has undergone a rather dramatic shift.  When the so-called Gang of Eight bill was up in the Senate, Cruz offered an amendment that would have created a method for those currently in the US illegally to achieve permanent resident status – if not actual citizenship.  Cruz now claims that it was a “poison pill” amendment intended to sabotage the bill.  But what did Cruz say back then.  Let’s here from the good Senator himself on the Senate floor – May 21, 2013.

They [undocumented aliens] would still be eligible for legal status and indeed, under the terms of the bill, they would be eligible for LPR [Lawful Permanent Resident] status as well so that they are out of the shadows, which the proponents of this bill repeatedly point to as their principal objective, to provide a legal status for those who are here illegally to be out of the shadows. This amendment would allow that to happen, but what it would do is remove the pathway to citizenship so that there are real consequences that respect the rule of law and that treat legal immigrants with the fairness and respect they deserve.

And a second point to those advocacy groups that are so passionately engaged. In my view if this committee rejects this amendment —  and I think everyone here views it is quite likely this committee will choose to reject this amendment —  in my view that decision will make it much much more likely that this entire bill will fail in the House of Representatives. I don’t want immigration reform to fail. I want immigration reform to pass. And so I would urge people of good faith on both sides of the aisle if the objective is to pass common sense immigration reform that secures the borders, that improves legal immigration and that allows those who are here illegally to come in out of the shadows, then we should look for areas of bipartisan agreement and compromise to come together. And this amendment, I believe if this amendment were to pass, the chances of this bill passing into law would increase dramatically. And so I would urge the committee to give it full consideration and to adopt the amendment.

Now I would suggest to all of those who passionately want to see this program fixed, that saying it’s all-or-nothing if there’s no path to citizenship, quote, there is no reform, tying immigration reform hostage to a path to citizenship is not a strategy to pass a bill. It’s a strategy to create partisan division. It’s a strategy that may well result in more political battles. But it’s not a strategy to fix the problem and so I would urge everyone on this committee to roll up our sleeves and fix the problem in a humane way that secures the border, gets serious about fixing that problem, that expands and improves legal immigration and that does not unfairly treat legal immigrants by removing a path to citizenship but allowing as this legislation does a legal status for those who are here illegally. That would be reform that a great many people across this country, both Republican and Democrat, would embrace and I would urge the committee to consider the amendment.

So Ted told us, that he “wants immigration reform to pass,” that he was in favor of “common-sense immigration reform,” that he “wanted to fix the problem in a humane way,” and that he was in favor of “legal status for those who are here illegally.” But really  folks, he was just joshing, pulling our leg, he didn’t really mean it, he wasn’t sincere, just doing his act.  His website now says nothing about such measures and instead is a laundry list of options to deal with undocumented aliens as harshly as possible.

So as the old joke goes, “How can you tell when Ted Cruz is lying?”  His lips are moving.

 

 

Does Ted Cruz Lack Coattails?

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GOP leaders are growing increasingly alarmed at the prospect of a Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) dcandidacy.  Many wonder whether the Texas firebrand’s extreme positions and rhetoric (not to mention his abrasive personality) will turn off independents.  If he is the nominee, concern is growing  that his lack of down ballot pull will endanger the GOP majority in the House.  Meanwhile, Democrats are enthused by the prospect. The Texas Tribune has more.

Some Democrats in Washington, D.C., are floating the idea that Ted Cruz could be as injurious to the GOP’s hopes of holding its majority in the U.S. House as the bombastic Donald Trump.

And, as the Tribune’s Abby Livingston reports, some Republicans give some credence to the argument. Former Virginia Republican Congressman Tom Davis said Cruz, as his party’s nominee, could harm candidates in the Northeast and Midwest while potentially helping candidates in the western states.

“I think it has to play out, but there is nervousness with Cruz, who is clearly not part of the establishment, that you don’t find with [Marco] Rubio or [Jeb] Bush or [John] Kasich in some of those districts,” Davis told the Tribune.

“Campaign operatives from both parties point to the 26 GOP-held seats that are in districts where Obama won a majority of the 2012 popular vote,” Livingston writes. “The Republican fear — and Democratic hope — is that Cruz falls short of 2012 GOP nominee Mitt Romney‘s performance and throws those seats into contention.”

For its part, the Cruz camp discounts such talk. “The way Cruz wins the election is by energizing Republicans and then making the argument to independents and even Democrats for how his conservative principles are what will provide real opportunity and improve their lives,” Cruz spokeswoman Catherine Frazier said in an email to the Tribune.

Red files that last comment from the Cruz camp in the “Wet Dreams” folder.  But he is also wary of the Dems thinking that a Cruz nomination will benefit them.  Never underestimate the power of a complete and total ideologue in a polarized voting public.

 

GOP Debate – Round ?

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Last night’s GOP debate in Las Vegas focused largely on issues of national security – not a surprise with CNN’s Wolf Blitzer at the helm.

Red’s favorite topic was when WB asked the estimable candidates about enforcing a No-Fly Zone in Syria and whether they would order a Russian plane shot down.  As always, Red translates the responses for you.

Chris Christie –  Hell yes, I would shoot down a Russian plane. I call Putin and tell him, “No flying, fuckhead.” And then when he ignores that we shoot.  And unlike the other weenies on this stage, I would insist on shooting down the planes myself – you know because I was a tough ass New Jersey prosecutor.  How does that work?   Every time a Russian jet entered the NFZ, I would be on the line immediately, targeting that sucker, remotely pushing the button to launch the missile and then celebrating afterwards with a double-meat bacon cheeseburger.  Fuck Yeah!

Rand Paul – If you want World War III, here’s your candidate. [Pointing to Christie]  If you are not absolutely bat shit crazy – like most of the respected candidates on this stage – and would prefer a big wussy in the White House, look no further.  I am the biggest wussy on this stage and proud of it.

Jeb!!!!????$ –  I have called for the NFZ and I would shoot down a plane with my sainted mother in it if it was violating the NFZ. Sorry, Dad.

Donald Trump – I too would shoot down a plane with  Jeb!!!!$$$$?’s mother in it.   But I like Putin bombing the shit out of Syria.  I back it 100%.  I would back it 1000% if that were possible, and believe me percentages well in excess of 100 will be the norm when I am elected president.  100% will be old hat.  No one will be talking about 100% when I am President.  500% will be the absolute minimum.

Ben Carson –  We shoot down Russian planes absolutely.  Then afterwards, I deal with the possibility of nuclear conflagration in my thoughtful, deliberate and respectful way as we descend into chaos and world war.

John Kasich – Why are you asking this question?  Why am I even still here? Is Red spelling my name correctly?

Ted Cruz – After I finish carpet bombing Syria and explaining in excruciating detail why that is not a war crime, there will be no real need for a NFZ.  In fact tourist groups will want to fly over Syria to see the glowing sand.

Carly Fiorina –  I would insist on a NFZ and shoot down anything that flies.  But I would not call Putin first – who by the way I talked with earlier today.  Others on this stage talk about making America great again.  But what is their plan?  I have a plan.  You know what would make this country great again – World War III.  I promise you that we will have WWIII if I am elected president.

Marco Rubio – Thank god we are not talking about immigration.

 

 

Quote for the Day

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“You don’t have to be popular with other senators, but you need to be respected by other senators if you have what it takes to be President of the United States . . . I mean, Barack Obama wasn’t popular with all the other senators, but he was respected . . . I don’t think Ted [Cruz] has the respect of his fellow senators.”

Sen. Claire McCaskill (D- Mo.)

At lunch today, someone told Red that several months ago, Sen. John Cornyn asked a local GOP power broker (the source of the story) if there was something he could do to get rid of Cruz.

Ted Cruz Confused?

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Sen. Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) was pontificating on the recent shooting rampage at a Colorado Springs Planned Parenthood facility while campaigning in Iowa on Sunday.  When asked about the accused killer Robert Lewis Dear, Cruz claimed that the media wanted “to blame him on the pro-life movement when at this point there’s very little evidence to indicate that.”

When a reporter told Cruz that Dear is alleged to have yelled out “no more baby parts” after his arrest Cruz responded, “Well, it’s also been reported that he was registered as an independent and a woman and transgendered leftist activist, if that’s what he is.”  Cruz was probably talking about a report from a right-wing blog, that uncovered a Colorado state voter registration form which lists Dear’s sex as female.

So in Ted Cruz’s topsy-turvy world having your sex recorded incorrectly on a voter registration card potentially makes you into a “transgendered leftist activist” that attacks PP facilities.

Cruz tells a different tale  about the Black Lives Matter movement – claiming that BLM activists are “literally suggesting and embracing and celebrating the murder of police officers.” Cruz went on to claim, “If you look at the Black Lives Matter movement, one of the most disturbing things is more than one of their protests have embraced rabid rhetoric, rabid anti-police language, literally suggesting and embracing and celebrating the murder of police officers. That is disgraceful.”

Cruz has no such words for his pro-life supporters who have advocated violence.  Their escalating rhetoric apparently does not faze the Tea Party favorite at all.  Cruz proudly touted the endorsement of Troy Newman who has repeatedly advocated for the defense of justifiable homicide for killers of abortion providers and called for the U.S. to execute abortion providers as murderers.  “We need leaders like Troy Newman,” according to Cruz.   MediaMatters has the details on Newman’s incendiary rhetoric.

Stand in Line to Insult Ted Cruz

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The thin-skinned Senator Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) thinks that Pres. Obama has insulted him by criticizing Cruz’s proposal to only allow Christian refugees into the U.S.

When I hear political leaders suggesting that there would be a religious test for which a person who is fleeing from a war-torn country is admitted, when some of those folks themselves come from families who benefited from protection when they were fleeing political persecution, that’s shameful, that’s not American.

Apparently, they are scared of widows and orphans coming into the United States of America.  . . . At first, they were too scared of the press being too tough on them in the debates. Now they are scared of 3-year-old orphans. That doesn’t seem so tough to me.

Cruz responded claiming that, “It is utterly un-befitting of a President to be engaging in those kinds of personal insults, attacks.” Cruz further charged that Obama was “belittling the Republican field” and called for the President to “insult me to my face.”

First, the Republican field is doing a more than adequate job of belittling itself with its  ridiculous rhetoric.  Second, Cruz seems to have a double standard about insults.  Cruz has accused Pres. Obama of waging a war on police, being a state sponsor of terrorism and violating the constitution.  Cruz also claimed that Obama’s “vilification of law enforcement” was responsible for the shooting death of Harris County Deputy Darren Goforth – a patently absurd claim in light of the facts surrounding that tragic murder.   Them’s  fighting words where Red comes from.

Moreover, Rachel Maddow of MSNBC points at that if Cruz should be concerned about anyone insulting him it should be Cruz himself –  who just last year argued that we should be accepting Syrian refugees while castigating the President for failing to act.  But that was before Cruz realized he could score some political points with his Tea Party base by attempting to look tough by calling for a halt to resettlement of all but Christian refugees from Syria.

What’s more, Cruz is doing more than just posturing and thumping his chest for the cameras. As the Washington Post reported, the senator “introduced a bill Wednesday that would prohibit refugees from any country the State Department has determined is controlled in part by a foreign terrorist organization from entering the United States.”
 
How would blocking victims of terrorism help? Cruz hasn’t explained, though it’s the sort of move that’s likely intended to impress Republican primary voters.
 
That said, if the senator is serious about a spirited debate over U.S. refugee policy, perhaps the best course of action would be an argument between this version of Ted Cruz and last year’s version of Ted Cruz. 
Interviewed in February 2014, Texas Sen. Ted Cruz declared that Syrian refugees should be permitted into the United States and argued that this could be done without jeopardizing national security.
 
“We have welcomed refugees – the tired, huddled masses – for centuries. That’s been the history of the United States,” he told Fox News in a video featured on Cruz’s website. “We should continue to do so.” He added: “We have to continue to be vigilant to make sure those coming are not affiliated with the terrorists, but we can do that.”
I’ll look forward to Cruz’s condemnation of Cruz for his reckless indifference to national security.

The Short List of the Accomplishments of Ted Cruz

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Red has put together a short list of the accomplishments of Sen. Ted Cruz (TP-Texas) since entering elective office:

  1. Chosen by Senate colleagues as “Most-Hated” in a landslide.
  2. Set new standard for shameless self-promotion.
  3. Shut-down government for a short time and tanked his party’s polling numbers.
  4. Didn’t waste valuable time attempting to pass actual legislation.
  5. Took grandstanding to a new level.
  6. Made record number of speeches to an empty Senate chamber.
  7. Became more convinced that he is World’s Smartest Man.
  8. Put the Tea back in Tea Party.
  9. Boosted sales of ugly black cowboy boots.
  10. Became pen-pals with Justin Trudeau.

Meanwhile, the Jeb!!!!$$$$? “Campaign” plans to highlight the complete lack of accomplishments.  The Texas Tribune has the skinny on Jeb!!!!$$$$?’s latest attempt to take down Ted.

“We feel really good about Texas,” said Jeb Bush campaign manager Danny Diaz, suggesting in an interview late Wednesday that Cruz has little to show Texans after three years in the Senate. “Where’s the accomplishments?” 

“The reality is, we look forward to communicating our record of accomplishment, the most conservative record of accomplishment in the field, versus others, and that includes Sen. Cruz,” Diaz told The Texas Tribune following the third Republican presidential debate here at the University of Colorado Boulder. “Sen. Cruz has not distinguished himself” either by repealing Obamacare or keeping the nation’s debt from exploding. 

“So the reality is, once again, good floor speeches, great PowerPoint, but when it comes time to get things done, where’s the accomplishments?” Diaz asked. “So as we discuss these differences with Texans and others, we’re going to highlight the most accomplished conservative record in the field versus folks in the field that don’t have any really discernible accomplishments.”