Posted on 02/07/2016 8:45:29 PM PST by SoConPubbie
Yesterday I told you how Ted Cruz talked about building a wall months before Donald Trump announced his 2016 presidential candidacy.
That post was misleading, and I deeply apologize.
Because Ted Cruz was actually talking about a wall years before Trump announced.
YEARS.
Here’s Ted Cruz, July 17, 2012, during his run for the Texas Senate, supporting building a wall:
MODERATOR: Mr. Cruz. You were asked during April’s Belo Debate if you support building a fence the length of the U.S./Mexico border and here’s what you said.
MODERATOR: He supports building a wall along the entire Texas/Mexico border. Is that something that you would support? Yes, no, why? We’ll start with you, Mr. Cruz.
CRUZ: Yes. We have an illegal immigration crisis and we need to do everything humanly possible to secure the border. That means fences, that means walls…
[edit]
MODERATOR: [unintelligible] wall, you said you’d support a wall —
CRUZ: I said yes to that.
MODERATOR: — even if it infringes on property rights of Texans along the way.
CRUZ: Property owners should be compensated for that [edit]
MODERATOR: Is that still your position tonight, to build a fence the length of the Texas/Mexico border?
CRUZ: I think we need to use every tool humanly possible.
MODERATOR: And that is one of them?
CRUZ: Yes.
MODERATOR: Yes? OK. Do you have any idea how much it would cost?
CRUZ: I don’t know the specific cost but I can guarantee you it is far less than the cost of illegal immigration.
The moderator goes on to berate Cruz for supporting this despite the cost. Cruz sticks to his guns. That was July 17, 2012, and the debate clip used in the second debate was from April 13, 2012. Donald Trump’s latest presidential run was announced in June 2015.
This means Ted Cruz supported a wall years before Trump announced his 2016 presidential bid.
And here is Cruz again, from July 30, 2011, supporting a wall as part of a comprehensive strategy to secure the border:
QUESTIONER: Do you favor a path to citizenship for illegal aliens already in the U.S., stricter border enforcement, and/or the building of a border wall or some other policy or combination of policies?
CRUZ: There were a lot of questions in that piece. Let me lay out my position on immigration, because I can state it simply and in one sentence. I am strongly opposed to illegal immigration. I am categorically opposed to amnesty. And I strongly support legal immigrants who follow the rules and come here seeking to work towards the American dream.
Now with respect to securing the borders, I approach this from the perspective of someone who’s spent much of his adult life in law enforcement. It makes utterly no sense that we don’t know who’s coming into this country. We don’t know the criminal backgrounds. Our borders are largely unsecured. And particularly in a post-9/11 world, that is lunacy. I support any and all possible efforts to secure the border. That includes fences, that includes walls, that includes technology, that includes helicopters, that includes drones, that includes manpower, that includes employment verification, that includes approaching it as a law enforcement priority. And right now, neither party is serious about doing that.
With respect to a path to citizenship or amnesty, I categorically oppose it. And the reason is, I’ve spent a lifetime working to defend the constitution and uphold the rule of law. It is fundamentally unfair and contrary to the rule of law to reward those who break the law. And you know, one of the people it’s most unfair to are those that are following the laws. There are immigrants who wait years and even decades to come here legally. And yet what amnesty programs say is that we’re going to take those that have chosen to break the law, and we’re going to reward them rather than insist that people follow the law. I don’t think that’s fair, I don’t think that’s right, and I don’t support it.
Thanks to @mbhouse on Twitter (here and here) for the pointers.
With all due respect i_robot73, that attitude is why we are now cursed with an unconstitutionally big federal government that walks on us daily.
In fact, note that the Constitutions Clause 12 of Section 8 of Article I is a constitutional check against a standing army, the Founding States never intending for the US to have a standing army that polices the world like it does now imo.
Justice Joseph Story had commented about security problems with a standing army.
Justice Joseph Story: Article 1, Section 8, Clause 12
The absence of any cogent argument in your post makes you a great Trump groupie. I'm sure he has a syllabus of insults he can send his trainees just in case they come to the end of their ability to conjure up more. But I wouldn't worry about that if it happened. Trump himself just recycles his. Being articulate is not a pre-requisite. Just being nasty, negative and devoid of any substantive policy points is enough.
Trump on, little Trumpster, Trump on!
In your desperation to take a swipe at sruleoflaw, you seem to have missed the point that he/she isn’t running for president. If and when, he/she does decide to run for public office, you might have an argument. Otherwise, you’re just flailing pitifully.
sruleoflaw, regarding your previous post, remember the days when Clinton was the embarrassment of the nation and the FReepers were making the exact point you were making — character matters? I wonder how many of those same FReepers have set aside those values to support the exceedingly creepy Trump. In other words, character only matters if we’re applying that principle to the guy with a “D” next to his name. Can they not see their own hypocrisy? Correction: WILL they not see their own hypocrisy?
So the alternative is the anti-Conservative who has been the poster boy for all Conservatives claim to hate...? Seriously?
But the TPA - which was also supported by many so-called “Conservatives”... interesting thing to hold against him.
As far as Cruz’s SuperPac... where is the documentation of the “anonymous money laundered donations”? Not saying it isn’t true - but I sure would appreciate some evidence/documentation.
The “anti-Conservative” isn’t stuffing his pockets with anonymous money laundered donations. Senator Principled Conservative (TM) is doing that. With situational ethics like that who knows what Cruz would do as POTUS.
http://www.cnn.com/2016/02/06/politics/ted-cruz-super-pac/index.html
“Talk is cheap.”
Yes, and all DONALD TRUMP is doing is TALKING.
Why would anybody believe the TALK from a flip flopper, like Donald?
“......that Mexico would pay for?”
Do you REALLY believe Trump can get Mexico to pay?
Mexico makes so much money from illegals sending their $$ back to Mexico, why would they do that?
"We stopped the Gang of Eight bill. Ted Cruz led the fight against the establishment would be living under amnesty right now if Cruz had not succeeded." - Rush Limbaugh
"It was that close to being passed... and I think I can say this with integrity. Without the vigorous opposition of Ted Cruz, this bill likely would have passed." - Sen. Jeff Session
Funny he didn’t see ANY need to talk about it during his pres announcement! In fact immigration just wasn’t on his mind.
Here are three candidates when they announced for president and what they had to say about immigration.
TRUMP June 16 , 2015
http://www.cbsnews.com/news/transcript-donald-trump-announces-his-presidential-candidacy/
When do we beat Mexico at the border? They’re laughing at us, at our stupidity. And now they are beating us economically. They are not our friend, believe me. But they’re killing us economically.
The U.S. has become a dumping ground for everybody else’s problems.
(APPLAUSE)
Thank you. When Mexico sends its people, they’re not sending their best. They’re not sending you. They’re not sending you. They’re sending people that have lots of problems, and they’re bringing those problems with us. They’re bringing drugs. They’re bringing crime. They’re rapists. And some, I assume, are good people.
But I speak to border guards and they tell us what we’re getting. And it only makes common sense. It only makes common sense. They’re sending us not the right people.
It’s coming from more than Mexico. It’s coming from all over South and Latin America, and it’s coming probably — probably — from the Middle East. But we don’t know. Because we have no protection and we have no competence, we don’t know what’s happening. And it’s got to stop and it’s got to stop fast.
(APPLAUSE)
I will immediately terminate President Obama’s illegal executive order on immigration, immediately.
(APPLAUSE)
I would build a great wall, and nobody builds walls better than me, believe me, and I’ll build them very inexpensively, I will build a great, great wall on our southern border. And I will have Mexico pay for that wall.
He’s weak on immigration. He’s in favor of Common Core. How the hell can you vote for this guy? You just can’t do it. We have to end — education has to be local.
When do we beat Mexico at the border? They’re laughing at us, at our stupidity. And now they are beating us economically. They are not our friend, believe me. But they’re killing us economically.
CRUZ Mar. 23, 2015
https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/transcript-ted-cruzs-speech-at-liberty-university/2015/03/23/41c4011a-d168-11e4-a62f-ee745911a4ff_story.html
Instead of the lawlessness and the president’s unconstitutional executive amnesty, imagine a president that finally, finally, finally secures the borders.
(APPLAUSE)
And imagine a legal immigration system that welcomes and celebrates those who come to achieve the American dream
RUBIO April 13, 2015
“modernize our immigration laws”
Yep...THAT is it, except for this..
En este pais, ustedes van a poder lograr todas las cosas que nosotros no pudimos.
“In this country, you will achieve all the things we never could.”
Next we’ll look at TRADE and Terrorism.
But remember, TPA brought us the Iran deal and will bring us Obamatrade. Cruz pushed hard for TPA, voted for cloture, then backed off on the final vote when no longer needed.
Yes, talk is cheap, and Donald’s conversion on the eve of his Presidential run is bargain basement stuff.
Exactly. What a bunch of BS. Ted could have stood up and demanded the fence be built! He did NOT. Is everyone, including Talk radio paid off by Cruz and Rubio’s K St Handlers??
See Post # 209 Cruz didn’t think immigration was even important enough to talk about when he announced for pres...almost a year ago, while we paid his salary!
Let’s see how it works out.
We can speculate as much as we want. We can’t guarantee any of these folks will follow through.
Cruz is not a freaking dictator. You know that. Sounds like your meme that TRUMP SAID IT FIRST has been blown to smithereens, and you are groping for a rational response.
See post 209.
Trump has given more details on policy than Cruz ever did. All Cruz did was talk about himself and sound like John Lennon asking everyone to ‘imagine’.......
Saying you will build a wall is one thing, but getting Congress to do it, and ESPECIALLY saying Mexico will pay for it, is delusional. Sorry.
“Cruz is not a freaking dictator. ....”
No he is not, but Donald IS!
As a citizen of NY State, I was especially upset with Donald Trump when he wanted to deprive me of voting in the GOP primaries.
When Trump was going to run for Governor of NY State, he said he would not run if there was a primary. The GOP chair basically told Donald he had to follow the rules like everybody else.
Trump would take away many of our liberties, including our property. Mr. Trump canNOT be POTUS.
Where is it?
Don’t be sorry. That’s how you see it.
I disagree.
The public wants that wall.
Let Congress try to stand in the way of that, and you’ll see a 75% swap out of Republicans in the House within two years.
One third of Republican Senators will be gone in two years.
This is getting done.
Actually I think BOTH Cruz and Trump would do what they could to build a fence, but they have to convince Congress, and hopefully they would.
However, Senator Cruz would build the fence, PLUS do right on mega other issues, like pick great judges.
Ted Cruz was a Constitutional lawyer, who gaduated magna cum laud, and clerked for Justice Rehnquist.
But even more importantly, Cruz has a long history of conservative, Constitutional PRINCIPLES, and did not flip just before deciding to run as Trump did.
Bret Baier at the first GOP debate asked Mr. Trump why he supported single-payer in 2000. Here’s his answer.
“As far as single payer, it works in Canada. It works incredibly well in Scotland.”
Do you trust this guy, Donald, to pick judges?
We are in a Constituional CRISIS, and we canNOT have someone, like Trump picking more anti-Constitutional judges.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.