“...Read the entire sentence...”
But I did read the entire sentence — the assertion is from the classmate, as in it was the classmate’s idea to claim “dual citizenship”, not Cruz’s.
If it was Cruz’s idea in the first place, that might be something. But we know that Cruz was not aware he had official Canadian citizenship until 9 months before he renounced it. The article can’t be reconciled with that. Hence, the entire article seems a strawman argument from the get go.
So then why does it say "Cruz identified himself as a dual citizen"? As I said, the "because I pointed to him..." is an explanation for why Cruz acknowledged his dual citizenship status. The student also says that Cruz had been wondering about his natural born status from youth. So Cruz, the super smart constitutional scholar, wouldn't bother to wonder about that Canadian birth certificate he had and think to himself "Hmmm, maybe I'm a dual citizen"?