Teabaggers Ascend To Prominence In Texas

Evidently Texas voters are upset that other states have been trying to out-crazy them, because last night they nominated a senate candidate that (once elected) will instantly assume the title of craziest senator in America once he reaches Washington. His name is Ted Cruz (pictured above), and he won by being to the right of ultra-right-winger and current Lt. Governor, David Dewhurst.

And the race wasn't even close, with Cruz winning 57% of the primary vote to Dewhurst's 43%. It was one of the most expensive primaries in Texas history. Outside groups spent about $14.4 million and the two candidates spending a total of about $32 million.

But probably the biggest story of the night was what this meant for the Republican Party in Texas. They have virtually ceased to exist. There will still be an entity that calls itself the Republican Party in the state, but what they really are now is the Teabagger Party. Any candidate that wants to get elected in Texas (at least for the next few years) is going to have to be as nutty as the teabaggers, because they now control the GOP (and therefore the state).

For those of you who don't live in Texas and may doubt Cruz's teabagger credentials, Think Progress has put together the top five things you need to know about Cruz. Here they are:

1) Ted Cruz Believes George Soros Leads A United Nations Conspiracy To Eliminate Golf: In 1992, President George H.W. Bush joined the leaders of 177 other nations in endorsing a non-binding UN document known as Agenda 21. This twenty year-old document largely speaks at a very high level of generality about reducing poverty and building sustainable living environments. Nevertheless, Cruz published an article on his campaign website claiming that this non-binding document isactually a nefarious plot to “abolish ‘unsustainable’ environments, including golf courses, grazing pastures, and paved roads.” To top it off, Cruz lays the blame for this global anti-golf conspiracy at the feet of a well-known Tea Party boogieman — “The originator of this grand scheme is George Soros.”


2) Ted Cruz Wants To Gut Social Security: In an interview with theTexas Tribune Cruz labeled Social Security a “ponzi scheme” and outlined a three-step plan to gut this essential program. Cruz would raise the Social Security retirement age, cut future benefits, and implement a George W. Bush-style plan to privatize much of the program. In other words, in addition to forcing them to work longer for fewer benefits, Cruz would place retirees at the mercy of a fickle stock market. Had Social Security been privatized during the career of a worker who retired near the end of the Bush Administration, that worker would have retired with less money in their privatized accountthan they would have if they’d simply kept their money between their mattress and box spring.


3) Ted Cruz Wants To Party Like It’s 1829: The Constitution provides that Acts of Congress “shall be the supreme law of the land,” and thus cannot be nullified by rogue state lawmakers. Cruz, however, co-authored an unconstitutional proposal claiming two or more states couldsimply ignore the Constitution’s command and nullify the Affordable Care Act so long as they work together. Although the Constitution does permit states to join in “interstate compacts” that have the force of law, under the Constitution such compacts require the consent of Congress and can be vetoed by the President. Cruz falsely claimed that states do not need to meet these Constitutional requirements to undermine laws they don’t like.


4) Ted Cruz Is An Islamophobe: At a campaign event earlier this month, Cruz touted another of the Tea Party’s favorite conspiracy theories, claiming that “Sharia law is an enormous problem” in this country. Although it is common for far right politicians to claim that American law is somehow being replaced with Islamic law, these claims have absolutely no basis in reality. Few American courts have ever even mentioned Sharia or Islamic law, and those that have generally only do so in contracts or similar cases where a party before the court agreed to be bound by Sharia law.


5) Ted Cruz Campaigned On How He Helped Texas Kill A Mexican: Cruz’s very first campaign ad encouraged GOP primary voters to support him because he helped make it easier for Texas to kill an “illegal alien.” According to the ad, “Cruz fought all the way to the Supreme Court” after “the UN and World Court overruled a Texas jury’s verdict to execute an illegal alien.” In reality, the case Cruz won had nothing to do with whether Texas had the authority to kill this man. Rather, it concerned whether Texas could defy a treaty requiring it to inform foreign nationals who are arrested of their right “to request assistance from the consul of his own state.” Even North Korea honored this treatythat Cruz fought to undermine.