GREENVILLE, S.C. — Sen. Ted Cruz on Saturday did something he hasn’t done too often since declaring for president: He took a swipe at his rivals for the Republican nomination.
The Texan delivered a typically energetic and rousing speech to an auditorium full of conservative activists gathered to hear from nearly a dozen Republican 2016 contenders. The address was a mixture of political humor, substantive policy proposals and ideological red meat served up grilled for a hungry crowd in the Tea Party friendly Upstate region of South Carolina.
But as a part of Cruz’s delivery, he charged some of the other GOP presidential contenders with paying lip service to defending religious liberty, lately a motivating issue for conservatives.
“There are candidates running in 2016 — even candidates running in the Republican field — who when Indiana was being battled, they were nowhere to be found. I can tell you this, when it comes to standing for religious liberty of Americans, I will always, always, always stand with the First Amendment,” Cruz said, during his appearance at the South Carolina Freedom Summit, sponsored by Citizens United and Rep. Jeff Duncan, R-S.C.
Cruz was referring to the attacks on Indiana Gov. Mike Pence and other Republicans in the Hoosier State for supporting a law that protected businesses from legal action should they choose not to provide services for a same-sex wedding on the grounds that doing so violated the owners’ religious beliefs that marriage should be between one man and one woman. The law was eventually revised to ensure that it did not discriminate against gays and lesbians.
On its own, the political play is obvious. The Upstate of South Carolina is decidedly social conservative territory. The Republicans here proudly wear their Christian faith on their sleeve. Conservatives here view Religious liberty as under assault by the courts and President Obama’s administration.
Cruz led the fight in 2013 to shut down the government over a futile attempt to defund Obamacare. That, coupled with his frequently harsh criticism of fellow Republicans on Capitol Hill, has endeared him to the conservative base and won him a reputation as a firebrand.
With conservatives safely in his corner, Cruz has to appeal to the rest of the party, which makes attacking fellow Republican primary opponents a lot more complicated strategically for Cruz. Asked after his speech if this marked a new stage in his presidential campaign, Cruz said nothing has changed. But he did reveal that these lines of attack are justifiable — and that he is likely to deliver more and more in the months to come.
“My focus is going to continue to be what it has been, which is to go high road,” Cruz told reporters. “I think there are some remarkable men and women who are looking at running for the presidency; some people I like and respect — senators, governors, people who are talented, people who are a new generation. And, I think we’re going to have a robust conversation about the right direction for this country to go.”
Cruz continued: “Now, as the election goes on, things may turn less than pleasant. Other candidates might choose to go into the gutter; I have no intention of reciprocating. So, I will not engage in personal attacks.”
“But I do think it’s perfectly legitimate to focus on records, to focus on records, to focus on issues, to focus on policy and to focus on vision,” said Cruz. “That’s the meat of politics. And so, it is perfectly fair to say, if there are issues that matter to you, whether religious liberty, whether immigration, whether Common Core, whether Constitutional rights, whether restoring American leadership in the world, that it is important for voters to look and ask each candidate what is your record in that regard.”
Disclosure: The author’s wife works as an advisor to Scott Walker
