Press Releases

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today announced a new staff hire in his Washington, D.C. office, effective immediately. He has named Austin Smithson, a native of Tyler, Texas, as legislative counsel. In Sen. Cruz’s office, Smithson will handle issues critical to Texas, such as energy, agriculture, environment, public lands, and transportation. Following is a brief background: Smithson previously served as legislative director and legislative counsel for Rep. Louie...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) released the following statement regarding recent terrorist attacks in Israel: "Earlier this week, Palestinian terrorists continued their brutal campaign of violence against civilians in Israel. Among the victims of these heinous attacks is Taylor Force, an American from Lubbock, Texas, who was murdered. "Taylor was a graduate student at Vanderbilt University's Owen Graduate School of Management, who was visiting Israel on a school trip. A...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) yesterday penned an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal, outlining the need for input from the American people on the next Supreme Court justice. Sen. Cruz’s op-ed in its entirety can be read here. Excerpts are available below: Republicans and Democrats are deeply divided over the proper role of the Supreme Court. President Obama and Democrats favor justices who see the Constitution as a potter sees clay—something that can be molded...

Senator Ted Cruz released the following statement upon news of First Lady Nancy Reagan’s passing. “Today we mourn the loss of First Lady Nancy Reagan – she was first in the heart of ‘Ronnie,’ and of Americans across the nation who will forever be grateful for her service to the nation. She was her husband’s first friend and counselor – and his inspiration. In her public role as first lady, she brought elegance, dignity, and wisdom to the White House as...

March 4, 2016 Greetings, Our Founding Fathers designed the Constitution to act as chains to bind the mischief of government and protect the liberties endowed to us by our Creator. Today, with a vacancy on the United States Supreme Court, those liberties hang in the balance. The sanctity of life, marriage, religious liberty, and the Second Amendment are at risk. The American people must have a voice in deciding the next Supreme Court Justice, and accordingly, I will continue to fulfill my...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), James Lankford (R-Okla.), and Mike Lee (R-Utah) today sent a letter to Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) Chairman Dr. Stephen Crocker, outlining new concerns that ICANN may have a direct operational relationship with the Chinese government and its potential implications for an Internet transition that ICANN is expected to approve in Morocco next week. Today’s letter to Dr. Crocker follows a letter Cruz,...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Thursday entered the following statement into the record at a hearing convened by Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.), chairman of the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and the National Interest. The hearing addressed the H-1B visa program and its impact on the American workforce and economy. “The vast majority of our immigration problems – from the unfinished border fence to the failure to deport those who have entered the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Thursday joined Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) in introducing the Restoring Internet Freedom Act (S. 2602), which would repeal the Federal Communication Commission’s (FCC) net neutrality rules that put the government in charge of determining Internet pricing, terms of service, and what types of products and services can be delivered. The bill also prevents the FCC from implementing similar rules in the future. “So-called net neutrality...

WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today joined Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) in introducing the Only Congress Can Change The Draft Act, establishing that only Congress has the power to modify or change the persons subject to Selective Service registration. This law would prevent the President and federal courts from mandating that women sign up for the draft and overriding the will of the American people and their elected representatives. “Today, I joined Sen. Lee to ensure...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) issued the following statement today regarding a letter that Cruz, Sen. James Lankford (R-Okla.), and Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah) received from Fadi Chehade, CEO of the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) on Friday. Chehade’s letter was in reply to one that Cruz, Lankford, and Lee sent on February 4 raising serious concerns and requesting information regarding Mr. Chehade’s involvement with the World Internet...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today signed a letter with all Senate Judiciary Committee Republicans concerning the subject of potential hearings for a Supreme Court nominee. The members stated their intention to exercise their constitutional authority to withhold consent on any nominee to the court submitted by President Barack Obama to fill the vacancy left by the death of Justice Antonin Scalia.  “Justice Scalia was a lion of the law,” said Sen. Cruz....

WASHINGTON – Today, Sen. Cruz (R-Texas) along with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.), Senate Environment and Public Works Committee Chairman Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.), House Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Fred Upton (R-Mich.) and House Energy and Power Subcommittee Chairman Ed Whitfield (R-Ky.), filed an amicus brief in  State of West Virginia v. Environmental Protection Agency, a case currently pending before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today responded to the Obama administration’s threat to veto his bill to rename the plaza in front of the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C. as “Liu Xiaobo Plaza,” after pro-democracy dissident and Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Liu Xiaobo. The U.S. Senate unanimously passed the bill on Friday, and Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) has introduced companion legislation in the U.S. House of Representatives. “The Obama...

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today issued the following statement regarding the passing of United States Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia: "Today our Nation mourns the loss of one of the greatest Justices in history – Justice Antonin Scalia. A champion of our liberties and a stalwart defender of the Constitution, he will go down as one of the few Justices who single-handedly changed the course of legal history. "As liberals and conservatives alike would agree,...

February 12, 2016 Greetings, This week, I was proud to introduce legislation with Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) to provide U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with necessary resources to help the agency enforce our immigration laws. Unfortunately, for far too long, the Obama administration has discouraged the enforcement of our nation’s immigration laws. Border security is national security, and we must enforce the rule of law. Americans, particularly Texans, have witnessed the...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – Today, the Senate unanimously passed legislation authored by U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) to rename the plaza in front of the Chinese embassy in Washington, D.C. as “Liu Xiaobo Plaza,” after pro-democracy dissident and Nobel Peace Prize winner Dr. Liu Xiaobo. Dr. Liu and his wife, Liu Xia, have been imprisoned for seeking basic human rights denied to them by the People’s Republic of China (PRC). Detained in 2008, Dr. Liu continues to be unjustly...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R-Fla.), Chairman of the Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa, on Wednesday introduced the PLO Accountability Act (S. 2537/H.R. 4522). Rep. Ros-Lehtinen was joined by Rep. Mark Meadows (R-N.C.) in leading this effort in the House of Representatives, accompanied by 11 other original cosponsors.  Cruz’s and Ros-Lehtinen’s bill would close down the Palestinian Liberation Organization...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – On Wednesday, U.S. Sens. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) introduced the ICE Agent Support Act of 2016 (S. 2538), which would provide U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) with necessary resources to help the agency enforce our nation’s immigration laws. This legislation would provide ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations with dedicated, substantial revenue from statutory fines and penalties for illegal aliens that are not currently...

WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) today sent a letter to President Barack Obama that expresses grave concerns about the administration’s North Korea policy and outlines a specific course of action to address North Korea’s illegal nuclear tests, strengthen U.S. national security and return greater stability to East Asia and the Korean Peninsula. Cruz sent the letter today after announcing he will vote for the North Korea Sanctions Enforcement Act of 2016 (H.R....