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April 24, 2015
Greetings,
Last week, Secretary John McHugh directed the Army to extend full benefits to the victims of the 2009 terrorist attack at Fort Hood who were recently awarded the Purple Heart medal.
I am grateful for his leadership, and I am glad those who suffered the brutal terrorist attack will finally receive the benefits they deserve for defending this nation.
Keep Texas strong,
Ted Cruz
Sen. Cruz Speaks on Senate Floor in Opposition to Lynch Nomination
Click to view video
On Thursday, Sen. Cruz spoke on the Senate floor urging his colleagues to uphold the rule of law and oppose the nomination of Loretta Lynch to the Office of Attorney General.
“Bringing in a new Attorney General should be turning a positive page in this country, but unfortunately the answers that Ms. Lynch gave at the confirmation hearing, in my opinion render her unsuitable for confirmation as Attorney General of the United States,” Sen. Cruz said.
“When asked further who has more right to a job, a United States citizen or a person who came to this country illegally, she responded, ‘I believe that the right and the obligation to work is one that's shared by everyone in this country, regardless of how they came here.' Well, Mr. President, a very large majority of the American citizens would beg to differ. Rule of law matters.”
View the full release here.
Sen. Cruz Joins with Rep. Ryan in Support of Free and Fair Trade
On Tuesday, Sen. Cruz and Rep. Paul Ryan (R-WI) published an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal promoting Congressional involvement in trade agreements and supporting trade-promotion authority (TPA).
In the op-ed, the Congressmen said, “By establishing TPA, Congress will send a signal to the world. America’s trading partners will know that the U.S. is trustworthy and then put their best offers on the table. America’s rivals will know that the U.S. is serious and won’t abandon the field. And the American people will know this trade agreement is a good, fair deal—because they’ll have the information they need to decide for themselves. Promoting American trade will create more opportunity in the country, and so we strongly urge our colleagues in Congress to vote for trade-promotion authority.”
Read the full piece here.
Sen. Cruz Thanks Army Sec. McHugh for Extending Benefits to Fort Hood Soldiers
Last week, Sen. Cruz released the following statement upon learning that Secretary of the Army John McHugh has ordered the U.S. Army to provide all possible benefits to the victims of the 2009 terrorist attack at Fort Hood who were recently awarded the Purple Heart medal:
“I am pleased to learn Secretary McHugh has directed that all appropriate benefits be provided to those who received the Purple Heart at last Friday's Fort Hood ceremony, as Congress intended. The Secretary's decision to provide hostile fire pay and combat-related special compensation finally provides appropriate recognition for those who were killed and injured during this heinous terrorist attack against our nation. I thank Secretary McHugh for providing a definitive response and clear guidance to ensure this matter is resolved as quickly as possible.”
Sen. Cruz Opposes the Boehner-Pelosi ‘Doc Fix’ Bill
Last week, Sen. Cruz released the following statement regarding legislation to address the Medicare sustainable growth rate (SGR) formula, also known as the ‘doc fix':
“While I appreciate the work done by my colleagues in the House, I cannot support the Boehner-Pelosi bill, which institutionalizes and expands Obamacare policies that harm patients and their doctors while adding roughly half a trillion dollars to our long-term debt within two decades. The so-called ‘SGR' is a flawed approach that needs to be eliminated, but doing so should be a catalyst for real entitlement reform. Any deal should be fully paid for and include significant and structural reforms to Medicare that provide seniors more power and control over their health care.”
Sen. Cruz Champions School Choice
On Monday, Sen. Cruz issued the following statement about Republican education reform:
“The Senate is currently considering reauthorizing the Elementary and Secondary Education Act-also known as ‘No Child Left Behind.' Congress must seize this opportunity to eliminate burdensome federal mandates and ineffective programs in order to restore decision making back to parents and students. As a first principle for education reform, the Republican Congress should advance school choice for America's children. To that end, Senator Mike Lee and I have introduced the Enhancing Educational Opportunities for All Students Act (S. 306), which would allow federal education dollars to follow low-income students to any public or private school of their choice-and which I will push to be included in the final bill.
“School choice is the civil rights issue of our day, and it is long past time for Congress to prioritize the future of our children above the interests of union bosses and bureaucrats.”
Sen. Cruz Sends a Letter to Sec. Kerry Regarding Iran Deal
Last week, Sen. Cruz sent a letter to U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry requesting all members of the P5+1 and Iran produce and make public a joint framework agreement outlining the parameters that have been agreed upon in the Iran nuclear negotiations, in light of multiple news reports citing conflicting fact sheets and statements released by parties to the ongoing talks.
The letter requested that “all members of the P5+1 and Iran produce and make public a joint framework agreement outlining the parameters that have been agreed upon, and those that will be addressed in the event negotiations continue in both classified and unclassified form.”
Read the full letter here.
Sen. Cruz Opposes Obama’s Decision to Remove Cuba from Terrorism List
Last week, Sen. Cruz released the following statement regarding President Obama's decision to remove Cuba from the list of state sponsors of terrorism:
“When it comes to making any deals with world dictators, the President of the United States should use two words: Prove it. Cuba must prove it is willing to change its behavior before the United States takes a single action to remove it from the list of state sponsors of terror. Fidel and Raul Castro have a decades-long track record of violent hostility towards our nation. It is dangerous and reckless to use a terrorist designation as a negotiating tool, as their regime continues to support and harbor terrorists who have murdered Americans. We need better than a promise of future change; Cuba needs to prove it. And, until Cuba does, any discussion about changing its terrorist designation should be off the table.”
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