Sen. Ted Cruz, the only GOP presidential candidate to speak at the Indiana Republican Party dinner Thursday, focused his message on victories conservatives have witnessed under Gov. Mike Pence’s leadership and how he could multiply those wins if elected.
The Tea Party Texan touted his similar views on social and fiscal issues, telling attendees if they have enjoyed the past few years under Pence’s leadership, they should support a Cruz presidency.
“The leadership y’all have seen in Indiana under Mike Pence has been incredibly powerful, but imagine how much better it would be if you weren’t doing it with an 800-pound weight on your back everyday,” Cruz said, referring to the Obama administration.
Cruz, who has the second-highest number of delegates among the three remaining conservative candidates, played to the state’s school choice supporters and praised their program, the largest in the country.
Cruz has previously called school choice programs the “civil rights issue of the 21st century” and also hit on the state’s shrinking coal industry as issues Hoosiers care about deeply that he would reform by cutting out federal influence over states.
“The leviathan that has been killing jobs. If we can rise up against it … 2016 will be a victory of the grassroots against Washington,” Cruz said.
Indiana residents will vote in the state’s Republican primary May 3.
