attention over the past few years. As the first Hispanic-Canadian Senator from Texas,

Ted Cruz is a very particular sort of politician, and that has not gone unnoticed. The republican

candidate has been hailed as the Tea Party’s poster boy. So, we wanted to know, who exactly

is Ted Cruz?

Well, perhaps most confusingly, Ted Cruz was born in Canada to an American mother and a

Cuban father. Notably, his father fought in support of Fidel Castro during the 1950s.

Now, if you watched our “Who Can Run For President” video, you’ll know that being

born in Canada doesn’t actually disqualify Cruz from the presidency.

Anyway, Ted Cruz began his political career as a domestic policy advisor to President

George W. Bush. He helped stop the Bush v. Gore recount, which awarded Bush the presidency

in 2000. He later became the Texas Solicitor General, and was part of a number of high-profile

cases. In one, he prevented the Supreme Court from removing “under God” from the pledge

of allegiance.

In 2012, Cruz joined the Senate, and burst into the public eye. Mostly for his conservative

policy stances and his questionably true statements in support of them. Cruz opposes net neutrality,

as well as the authority of the FCC’s regulatory. He has voted against all gun control bills,

and has threatened to filibuster bills that would improve background checks for gun purchases.

  Like most conservatives, Cruz is adamantly

against “Obamacare”. Some have pointed to him as the leading force behind the 2013

government shutdown in protest of Obamacare, although Cruz has blamed Obama for the shutdown.

He has also proposed legislation barring illegal immigrants from ever receiving citizenship,

and to triple the number of guards at our borders.

As the recipient of large donations from gas and oil companies, Cruz is largely in support

of the Keystone XL pipeline, and lifting limits on oil exports. He has also spoken out about

ending the 1992 ethanol mandate that aims to reduce carbon emissions. Cruz has voted

against the idea that climate change is man-made, and has called environmental scientists, “global

warming alarmists” and compared them to “flat-earthers”.

Socially, Cruz is anti-abortion except in cases of harm to the mother. He also opposes

same-sex marriage and gay pride parades. In 2015, Cruz proposed the State Marriage Defense

Act, which would prevent the federal government from using the word “marriage” or “spouse”

to describe nontraditional marriages. He also voted against a bill which would protect a

number of minority groups, including women, Native Americans, and the LGBT community.

He also opposes legalization of marijuana, although he respects a state’s right to

decide.

As a candidate, Cruz doesn’t especially stand out amongst his fellow republicans.

However, as a polemic speaker on social and political issues, Ted Cruz has led the pack

in conservative rhetoric, despite garnering less support than some of his other peers.

The GOP race for the 2016 nomination is going to be long and messy. To learn more about

 Mike Huckabee and Marco Rubio, two other candidates, check out these videos now. Thanks

for watching TestTube, and don’t forget to subscribe below.