Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) waves as he arrives at Liberty University. (AP Photo/Andrew Harnik)
(CNSNews.com) –Sen. Ted. Cruz said in a speech at Liberty University today that he believes it is time to reclaim the U.S. Constitution and asked his listeners to "imagine abolishing the IRS."
“It is a time for truth. It is a time for liberty. It is a time to reclaim the Constitution of the United States,” Cruz said.
“We stand together for liberty. This is our fight. The answer will not come from Washington. It will come only from the men and women across this country – from men and women, from people of faith, from lovers of liberty, from people who respect the Constitution,” said Cruz.
Cruz also called for the abolishment of the IRS in his speech.“Instead of a tax code that crushes innovation, that imposes burdens on families struggling to make ends meet, imagine a simple flat tax that lets every American fill out his or her taxes on a postcard. Imagine abolishing the IRS,” he said.
Cruz criticized President Barack Obama’s executive order--currently under injunction from a federal court--that would grant legal status and work permits to millions of illegal aliens in the country.
“Instead of the lawlessness and the president’s unconstitutional amnesty, imagine a president that finally, finally, finally secures the borders, and imagine a legal immigration system that welcomes and celebrates those who come to achieve the American dream,” said Cruz.
Cruz also touched on Obamacare’s contraceptive mandate, which forces employers to provide, and almost all Americans to purchase, health insurance plans that cover sterilizations, contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs and devices.
“Instead of federal government that wages an assault on our religious liberty, that goes after Hobby Lobby, that goes after the Little Sisters of the Poor, that goes after Liberty University, imagine a federal government that stands for the First Amendment rights of every American,” Cruz said.
The U.S. Supreme Court in January issued an injunction temporarily protecting the Little Sisters of the Poor, a group of Catholic nuns who help the elderly and infirm, from having to comply with the Obamacare mandate.
“Instead of a federal government that works to undermine our values, imagine a federal government that works to defend the sanctity of human life and to uphold the sacrament of marriage,” he added.
In a tweet sent out last night, Cruz announced that he would be seeking the Republican presidential nomination in 2016. That made him the first of one of many Republicans who are expected to enter next year's caucuses and primaries.