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| Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) en.wikipedia.org |
It is Tuesday and that means it is time for our weekly candidate forum. Super Tuesday was an exciting day in the forum, with a steady stream of results coming in. As Blogger more or less predicted, Dr. Ben Carson is officially out. Now we turn our attention to our next candidate. Before we get going on Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) (http://www.tedcruz.org), yours truly would like to remind all of the readers in Idaho, Hawai'i, Mississippi, and Michigan that you still have time to cast your vote today. If you are in one of the states that has still to hold a primary or caucus, check with your state's Secretary of State website for voting information. To register, you must be a natural-born or naturalized citizen, aged eighteen years or older. As always Blogger encourages everyone to exercise his or her vote. Let us have a look at Senator Cruz and where he stands on certain issues.
Senator Cruz was born in Calgary, Alberta, Canada to a Cuban immigrant and his American-born wife in 1970. In 1974, the Cruz family permanently relocated to Texas. Following graduation from Harvard Law School, Senator Cruz worked at Federal Trade Commission, eventually directing the FTC's Office of Policy Planning between 1999 and 2003. Senator Cruz also served as associate deputy attorney general in the United States Department of Justice and domestic policy advisor to former-President George W. Bush. Between 2003 and 2008, he acted as Solicitor General of Texas, appointed to the position by Attorney General Greg Abbot. Senator Cruz also taught law school at the University of Texas School of Law in Austin between 2004 and 2009. In 2012, he ran for Senate to fill the seat vacated by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchinson (R-Texas). As senator, Mr. Cruz chairs the Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Space, Science and Competitiveness. In November 2012, he was appointed to the National Republican Senatorial Committee. Senator Cruz officially announce his presidential campaign in March 2015 and became the first Latino to win a presidential caucus. (en.wikipedia.org) Now that we have met the candidate, let us find out where the Honorable Senator Cruz stands on some of the issues.
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| Preamble to the United States Constitution abcnews.com |
Restoring the Constitution
One of Senator Cruz's greatest passions is defending the United States Constitution. The banner headline in this section on the campaign website boasts the Senator's 70 briefs authored and nine oral arguments presented to the U.S. Supreme Court. Impressive, indeed. The Constitution is one of America's foundational documents and one of the great documents of civilization. Based on the senator's literal interpretation, it is
...the supreme law of the land that was crafted by our founding fathers as chains to bind the mischief of government and to protect the liberties endowed to us by our Creator. (http://www.tedcruz.org)
Senator Cruz believes that recent administrations have repeatedly defied the Constitution and the rule of law, making us less free. His goal is to restore the document as the rule of law. Senator Cruz also pledges to reduce federal government functions to only those outlined in The Constitution and return power to the states.
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| Gun control the federalist.com |
Second Amendment Rights
The Second Amendment to The Constitution guarantees citizens the right to bear arms and raise a well regulated militia. The headline in this section trumpets Senator Cruz's defense of the Second Amendment in 31 states. He believes that Americans's right to bear arms ...makes us more safe, secure and free. (Ibid) Senator Cruz believes that the Second Amendment is more than just for sport. For him, it is about the right protecting homes and families. Senator Cruz strongly believes, When citizens cease to have the right to defend ourselves, we cease to be free (Ibid) The Senator touts his defense of the Second Amendment before the Supreme Court and his advocacy of a citizens's right to bear arms.
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| U.S, Border Patrol agent washingtonpost.com |
Secure The Border
Border security, i.e. immigration, is a key issue for Senator Cruz who equates it with national security. As president, Senator Cruz pledges to immediately end President Barack Obama's amnesty program, suspend and audit the H-1B visas and end any increase in legal immigration as long as American unemployment remains high. To wit, Senator Cruz offers this plan summary in a link on his website. The plan is broken down into three sections: Secure The Border, Restore The Rule of Law, and Reform Legal Immigration To Protect Americans.
The bullet points for the first section are:
Build a wall that works. Triple the number of Border Patrol agents. Increase vital aerial surveillance and other technology along the border. Finish the biometric tracking system at our nation's ports of entry.
In the second section, the highlights include: ending President Obama's amnesty program for undocumented immigrants. Increase the number of deportations and end catch-and-release. Put an end to Sanctuary policies, sign Kate's Law, and deport criminal immigrants. Finally, as president, Senator Cruz would enact policies that would prohibit undocumented immigrants from receiving financial benefits and strengthen E-verify. The highlights of the last section are: suspend and review the H1-B visas, end increases in legal immigration as long as American unemployment remains high, enforce the public-charge doctrine which demands immigrants certify that they are economically self-sufficient, and end birthright citizenship.
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| The branches of the U.S. Military allthingspoliticaltoday.com |
Protect The Homeland
Senator Ted Cruz believes that the United States is an exceptional nation, one that other countries aspire to emulate. He also believes that while American intentions towards the rest of the world are peaceful, that does not mean we are without enemies-...the matter of fact is our enemies are on the march. (Ibid). Taking aim at President Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, the website declares,
Two terms of the disastrous Obama-Clinton foreign policy have had one useful effect: we now know what the worlds starts to look like without America...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 world. (Ibid)
Senator Cruz has put together an extensive plan to rebuild the American military, based the following principles: restore America's position as the the global moral leader. The Reagan era maxim "Peace through strength" is not outdates, rather, it is the basis of deterrence that requires both. Cross-platform military strength that operates in the field, space, cyber, and information. The military's ability to address state and non-state operatives and conduct conventional and non-conventional campaigns. Re-affirm our commitments to our allies and the commitment that military strength will not replace the battle of ideas.
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| Jobs savanna.com |
Jobs and Opportunity
Senator Ted Cruz's approach to reigniting jobs, growth, and opportunities is through fundamental tax reform. By fundamental tax reform, he is referring to a Simple Flat Tax. You can read about the Flat Tax Plan in a link on the Cruz website The Cruz Simple Flat Tax promises across the board double-digit increases in take home income. The current progressive tax rates will collapses into a single rate of 10 percent. What this means is for an average family of four, the first $36,000 will be tax-free. (Ibid) Using data from the Tax Foundation (http://www.taxfoundation.org), the Simple Flat Tax will result in:
Boost Gross Domestic Product by 13.9 percent above what is currently projected
Increase wages by 12.2 percent
create 4, 861,000 additional jobs
Quick digression: Primary results are starting to come in and Hillary Clinton is the winner in the Mississippi Democratic primary.
Senator Cruz also pledges regulatory reform, including the Affordable Care Act. In place of ACA, as president, Senator Cruz promises to make health care affordable, personal, and portable. He plans to accomplish this through open insurance markets across state lines, expand Health Savings Accounts, and disconnect health insurance from employment. Senator Cruz also pledges to take advantage of America's natural energy resources, opening up abundant resources. Finally, as president, Senator Cruz promises to continue internet freedom by not enacting Net Neutrality, prohibit the Federal Communications Commission from regulating the internet, and veto the Internet Sales Tax bill.
As always, Blogger encourage all the readers to get informed and get registered to vote (if you are a U.S. citizen over eighteen). Blogger has still not decided who to back in this election but is grateful for our weekly forum in helping yours truly decide. Also, please remember to check out all the candidates's websites (http://www.tedcruz.org) for more more information. Blogger will have a summary of today's primaries in a post tomorrow.
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