New York Times columnist David Brooks’ persistent criticism of Ted Cruz’s presidential bid has gained the Texas senator’s attention.
In recent days, Brooks has castigated Cruz on air and in print for what the columnist perceives as Cruz’s effort to create an “atmosphere of apocalyptic fear.” Brooks talked to PBS about Cruz’s “dark and satanic tones,” and followed it up with a fiery analysis of Cruz’s campaign performance in the editorial pages of the Gray Lady.
“Cruz’s speeches are marked by what you might call pagan brutalism,” Brooks wrote of the senator’s style on the stump. “There is not a hint of compassion, gentleness and mercy. Instead, his speeches are marked by a long list of enemies, and vows to crush, shred, destroy, bomb them. When he is speaking in a church the contrast between the setting and the emotional tone he sets is jarring.”
When a Vox.com writer tweeted about Brooks’ column, Cruz made his thoughts about Brooks public on twitter.
“Actually, I don’t know him,” Cruz tweeted. “But when I was elected he said he ‘didn’t like my face'” and now he says I’m ‘Satanic.'”
Actually, I don’t know him. But when I was elected he said he “didn’t like my face” and now he says I’m “Satanic.” https://t.co/q6kCfer178
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) January 12, 2016
Cruz’s nonchalant response to Brooks’ words mirrors his reaction to the vituperative attacks from rival Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump. But it stands in stark contrast to his wont to bash the press on the campaign trail and debate stage.
“There are 365 days in a year, four years in a presidential term, and four years in a second term,” Cruz says in an oft-repeated line on the campaign trail. “By the end of eight years, there are going to be a whole lot of reporters and newspaper editors and journalists that have checked themselves into therapy.”
Cruz’s jab at the press is often followed with a playful smile and met with laughter from the GOP primary voters at his events. Brooks does not appear to find Cruz amusing and has begun swatting at the Texas senator from afar. Whether Cruz looks to leverage Brooks’ words to his advantage is yet unknown, but he has already made a habit of berating the Times on the stump.
“When we launched our campaign, The New York Times promptly opined, ‘Cruz cannot win because the Washington elites despise him’,” Cruz routinely says on the trail, and in ads run by his supporters’ super PAC. “I kind of thought that was the whole point of the campaign!”
Cruz ranks second in the Washington Examiner‘s newest GOP presidential power rankings.
