Texas Republican Ted Cruz may be one of the newest members of the Senate, but he has quickly taken the lead in attacking President Barack Obama's recent failures and missteps. While debating Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer on Meet the Press Sunday, Cruz called out the President on the eve on his inauguration for failing to cut spending or produce a budget. He also criticized Obama for politicizing the Newtown school shooting to appease advocates for gun control.
"What I don’t think is constructive is what the President is doing right now," he said. "Which is within minutes of that horrible tragedy in Newtown, the President began trying to exploit that tragedy to push a gun control agenda that is designed to appeal to partisans – designed to appeal to his political partisans."
Cruz also took on the discussion of background checks not taking place at gun shows. "You know, there actually isn’t the so-called 'Gun Show Loophole.' That doesn’t exist," he said. "Any licensed firearm dealer who sells at a gun show has to have a background check. It’s a requirement that applies to every licensed firearm dealer. What it doesn’t apply to is personal sales one-on-one. And that’s true whether it’s at a gun show or not."
Cruz also called President Obama's recent gun control recommendations ineffective. "Number one, it would have done zero to prevent the crime in Newtown. Number two, many of the provisions are contrary to the constitutional protection of the Second Amendment. Number three, they don’t work."
The senator also pointed out how ineffective assault weapon bans have been in the past. "You know, Chuck said a minute ago the assault weapons ban was tremendously successful. The assault weapons ban was one of the least successful bills that has ever been put in place. And in fact, when the ban expired there were roughly 700 murders using all rifles. Today there are roughly 300. There are less than half. This is not designed to actually solve the problem of violent crime, this is designed to assuage liberal partisans who want to push gun control."
Cruz then criticized the inability of the President and Democrats to address the budget and the rising deficit. "There is no doubt the Senate hasn’t done its job," he said. "It’s been nearly four years since it’s passed a budget and the Senate should pass a budget…We have a crisis. I’ll tell ya, I just got back last week from Afghanistan, and I had multiple service men and women clasp me on the arm and say, 'Please do something about the debt a deficit. We’re bankrupting the country.'"
Victor Medina writes for Yahoo News and his political blog WhenLiberalsAttack.com. His other writing credits include The Dallas Morning News and SportsIllustrated.com. He has served as a Dallas County election judge and on the Board of Directors of The Sixth Floor Museum. You can follow him on his blog, VictorMedina.com or on Twitter at @mrvictormedina. He can be reached by email at vic@victormedina.com. To be notified of future stories by Victor Medina, click the SIGN UP or SUBSCRIBE button at the top of this page.
Source: Press release, Ted Cruz Senatorial office
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