# Ted Cruz Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (b. December 22, 1970) is the **senior U.S. Senator from Texas** (elected 2012, re-elected 2018 and 2024), previously the **38th Solicitor General of Texas** (2003-2008), and one of the most distinctive figures of the 2010s-2020s Senate Republican conference. A Princeton undergraduate (1992) and Harvard Law (1995) graduate who clerked for Chief Justice William Rehnquist after clerking for U.S. Court of Appeals Judge J. Michael Luttig, Cruz combines elite institutional credentialing with a **Tea Party movement political identity** — he was the principal Senate-level beneficiary of the 2010-2012 Tea Party insurgency, defeating Texas Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst in the 2012 Senate primary in one of the landmark Tea Party wins. Cruz is best known nationally for three things: his **2013 21-hour Senate floor speech** against the Affordable Care Act that preceded the October 2013 government shutdown; his **2016 Republican presidential primary campaign** that finished second to Donald Trump after a bitter personal feud; and his **January 6, 2021 objection** — alongside [[Josh Hawley]] — to the certification of the [[Electoral College]] count from Arizona. Cruz matters for the KB for three reasons. First, his **institutional positioning** as a Federalist Society-credentialed movement-conservative who weaponized Senate procedural tools on behalf of Tea Party priorities made him one of the defining figures of the 2013-2016 period of conservative institutional politics — the 2013 government shutdown, the filibuster tactics around Obamacare, and the relentless public criticism of Senate Republican leadership (including McConnell, whom Cruz publicly called a liar on the Senate floor in July 2015) positioned Cruz as the voice of movement-conservative frustration with institutional Republican accommodation. Second, his **2016 presidential campaign and 2015-2016 feud with Trump** is one of the most documented chapters of the GOP's transition to Trump — including Trump's personal attacks on Heidi Cruz and insinuations about Cruz's father's role in the JFK assassination, Cruz's July 2016 RNC speech refusing to endorse Trump, his subsequent September 2016 reversal endorsing Trump, and the complete post-2016 accommodation that culminated in Cruz being one of Trump's most aggressive Senate allies by 2020-2024. Third, his **January 6, 2021 Electoral College objection** — which Cruz had announced on January 2, 2021 alongside ten other senators in a coordinated statement — was the procedural mechanism that forced the January 6 congressional session to continue after the Capitol attack was cleared, and is one of the most documented moments of Senate Republican alignment with Trump's post-election effort. ## Background - Born December 22, 1970, in Calgary, Alberta, Canada, to Rafael Cruz (a Cuban-born evangelical Christian who had emigrated to the U.S. in 1957) and Eleanor Darragh (an American mathematician/computer programmer of Irish descent) - Family moved to Houston, Texas in 1974 - Graduated from Second Baptist High School in Houston (1988) - BA cum laude from Princeton University (1992, public policy, School of Public and International Affairs) - JD magna cum laude from Harvard Law School (1995; where he was primary editor of the Harvard Law Review) - Law clerk to Judge J. Michael Luttig, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (1995-1996) - Law clerk to Chief Justice William Rehnquist, U.S. Supreme Court (1996-1997) - Associate at Cooper, Carvin & Rosenthal (1997-1998) - Private practice; worked on [[George W. Bush]]'s 2000 presidential campaign including as domestic policy adviser and the *[[Bush v. Gore]]* Supreme Court litigation team - Associate Deputy Attorney General (2001) under John Ashcroft - Director of Office of Policy Planning, Federal Trade Commission (2001-2003) - 38th Solicitor General of Texas (January 2003 – May 2008) - Partner at Morgan, Lewis & Bockius (2008-2013) - U.S. Senator from Texas (January 3, 2013 – present) - Married Heidi Nelson Cruz since 2001; two daughters - Released his Canadian citizenship in May 2014 after it became a potential 2016 campaign issue ## Solicitor General of Texas (2003-2008) Cruz's five-year tenure as Texas Solicitor General positioned him at the center of conservative appellate litigation: - Argued nine cases before the U.S. Supreme Court (winning five, losing four) - Successfully defended the Texas [[Ten Commandments]] monument in *Van Orden v. Perry* (2005) — a landmark religious-liberty case - Defended the Pledge of Allegiance's "under God" phrase in federal appellate litigation - Defended Texas redistricting and election-law cases The Solicitor General tenure established Cruz's credentials within the conservative legal movement and made him a frequent presence at Federalist Society conferences and conservative legal gatherings. ## 2012 Senate Primary Cruz's 2012 Senate primary campaign against Lieutenant Governor David Dewhurst was one of the landmark Tea Party victories of the cycle: - **Dewhurst**: The establishment favorite with name recognition, institutional Republican support, and a $19 million personal-fortune war chest - **Cruz**: Starting the race with 1% name recognition; backed by Tea Party groups including the [[Club for Growth]], [[FreedomWorks]], and Madison Project - **Runoff victory**: Cruz forced a runoff (July 31, 2012) and won 57%-43% after consolidating conservative-movement support - **General election**: Cruz won 56.5%-40.6% against former state representative Paul Sadler The 2012 victory made Cruz one of the most prominent Tea Party senators and established his national political profile from the start of his Senate career. ## 2013 Government Shutdown and Floor Tactics Cruz's most prominent first-term Senate episode was the September 2013 21-hour Senate floor speech against the Affordable Care Act (technically not a filibuster because it did not actually block a vote, but functionally the same tactic). The speech led into: - The October 1-16, 2013 federal government shutdown - The publicly-visible conflict between Cruz and Senate Republican leadership (McConnell) over tactics - Cruz's positioning as the voice of movement-conservative frustration with institutional accommodation The shutdown ended with essentially no policy concessions from the Obama administration, and Cruz subsequently took criticism from institutional Republicans for tactics they characterized as counterproductive. Cruz's response consistently was that the tactics had been necessary to demonstrate opposition even when unlikely to prevail. ## 2016 Presidential Campaign and Trump Feud Cruz announced his presidential campaign on March 23, 2015 — the first major Republican candidate to announce. The campaign's trajectory: - **Iowa caucuses (February 1, 2016)**: Cruz won with 27.6% (Trump 24.3%, Rubio 23.1%) - **Super Tuesday (March 1, 2016)**: Cruz won Texas, Oklahoma, Alaska - **April-May 2016**: Cruz became Trump's principal remaining rival - **Indiana primary (May 3, 2016)**: Cruz lost 53-36; suspended campaign the same night - **Total result**: Cruz finished second to Trump with 7.8 million primary votes The Cruz-Trump feud during the campaign: - **Trump attacks on Heidi Cruz**: Trump retweeted an unflattering image of Heidi Cruz in March 2016 - **Trump claims about Rafael Cruz**: Trump claimed in May 2016 that Rafael Cruz had been photographed with Lee Harvey Oswald before the JFK assassination (based on a *[[National Enquirer]]* story) - **Cruz's response (May 3, 2016)**: A notable press conference denouncing Trump as "utterly amoral," "a pathological liar," "a narcissist," and "a serial philanderer" - **RNC speech (July 20, 2016)**: Cruz refused to endorse Trump, was booed off the stage, told delegates to "vote your conscience" - **September 2016 reversal**: Cruz endorsed Trump despite the earlier characterizations The reversal is one of the most documented political accommodations of the Trump era. ## Post-2016 Trump Alliance After 2016, Cruz substantially aligned with Trump's political operation: - **2018 re-election**: Narrowly defeated [[Beto O'Rourke]] 50.9%-48.3% in a bitterly contested race; Trump campaigned for Cruz - **2020 campaign support**: Consistent public support for Trump - **January 6, 2021 Electoral College objection**: Cruz was a principal organizer of the group of senators objecting to Electoral College certification - **2021 Cancún trip**: Cruz traveled to Cancún with his family during [[Winter Storm Uri]], the February 2021 Texas winter storm that left millions without power; became a major political controversy - **2024 re-election**: Cruz defeated Democratic Representative Colin Allred in 2024 ## January 6, 2021 Electoral College Objection Cruz was one of the principal organizers of the January 2, 2021 statement by eleven senators announcing they would object to certification of the Electoral College. The stated basis — that Congress should establish an emergency commission to audit election results — was widely understood as a procedural mechanism to delay or prevent [[Joe Biden]]'s certification. On January 6 itself, Cruz objected to Arizona's electoral count alongside Josh Hawley's objection to Pennsylvania's. After the Capitol attack was cleared, both objections were brought to a vote in the chambers; Cruz and Hawley were the only two senators who voted to sustain their respective objections. ## Senate Record and Positioning Cruz's Senate voting record positions him as among the most consistently conservative members of the chamber: - **Judicial confirmations**: Principal advocate for Trump I judicial nominees; substantial role in the Barrett confirmation process - **Immigration**: Strong restrictionist; opposed bipartisan compromise packages - **Foreign policy**: Hawkish on Iran, China, Russia; consistent Israel supporter - **Tax and economic policy**: Supported 2017 tax cut; favors entitlement reform - **Social conservatism**: Full voting record on abortion, religious liberty, LGBTQ-related legislation ## Connection to the KB Ecosystem - **[[Donald Trump]]**: 2016 primary rival; subsequent Senate ally; ongoing relationship across the Trump I and [[Trump II]] periods. - **[[Josh Hawley]]**: Principal partner in the January 6, 2021 Electoral College objection. - **[[Federalist Society]]**: Longtime movement-conservative legal movement figure. - **[[Leonard Leo]]**: Conservative legal movement ally; judicial confirmation collaborator. - **[[Mitch McConnell]]**: Publicly feuded with as senior senator; subsequently accommodated. - **Tea Party movement**: Principal Senate-level beneficiary of the 2010-2012 Tea Party insurgency. - **2016 primary campaign**: Principal Trump rival in the primary; documented feud and accommodation. - **January 6 Electoral College objection**: One of two senators who voted to sustain an objection. ## See Also - [[Donald Trump]] - [[Josh Hawley]] - [[Mitch McConnell]] - [[Leonard Leo]] - [[Federalist Society]]