Sen. Ted Cruz blasted the Obama administration Saturday for its reluctance to fight or even define the threat of the Islamic State in the U.S. and abroad.
Speaking at FreedomWorks’ Rising Tide Summit in Iowa, Cruz vowed that any individuals who pledged allegiance to the Islamic State would be “signing their death warrant.”
“We will carpet bomb them into oblivion,” Cruz said of the radical Islamic terrorists’ group stronghold in the Middle East.
“I don’t know if sand can glow in the dark, but we’re going to find out.”
The Texas Republican repeated criticisms of Democrats such as Hillary Clinton and Sen. Bernie Sanders, who focused on gun control in the wake of the San Bernardino shooting.
“You don’t stop the bad guys by taking away our guns,” Cruz said. “You stop the bad guys by using our guns.”
The freshman senator is gaining on Ben Carson in national polls and is threatening to eclipse the retired neurosurgeon in Iowa as the second-place presidential contender. Cruz sits at No. 2 on the Washington Examiner‘s latest presidential power rankings.
Cruz argued Saturday the 2016 race should be a “referendum” on healthcare and tax laws.
“My top two legislative priorities are repealing Obamacare and administering a flat tax,” he said, touting his intention to “abolish the IRS” to thunderous applause from the Cedar Rapids audience.
