Skip to content

ICYMI: Sen. Cruz: This is a Moment of Testing

Speaks with Megyn Kelly regarding President Obama’s Executive Amnesty

WASHINGTON, DC -- U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, spoke with Fox News’ Megyn Kelly last night regarding the President’s decision to unilaterally grant amnesty and what the new Republican Congress can do to stop it.
 
On the President’s planned executive action:
 
“We are unfortunately witnessing a constitutional crisis. What President Obama's doing is he is defying the law, he's defying the Constitution. The President quite rightly said just a few weeks ago his policies were on the ballot all over the country. This last election was a referendum among amnesty and the American people overwhelmingly rose up and said, no, we don't want lawless amnesty. And I'm sorry to say President Obama's reaction is defiant and it is angry with the American people. If the President goes forward with this, if he goes forward unilaterally defying the Congress, defying the American voters then it's incumbent upon Congress to use every single constitutional rule we have. To defend the rule of law to rein in a President so the President does not become an unaccountable monarch imposing his own policies in defiance of the American people. This is a moment of testing and I am hopeful we will see Republicans in Congress stand up and side with the American people.”
 
On what Congress should do to stop the President’s illegal amnesty:
 
“Step number one, the new Senate Majority Leader, Mitch McConnell, should stand up and say if you disregard the constitution, if you disregard the law, if you issue this executive amnesty, the new Congress for the next two years will not confirm a single nomination, judicial or executive, other than vital national security positions until you end this illegal amnesty. Now, that's a big and dramatic step. It’s never been done before in Congress but the framers put in place checks and balances and the confirmation power is a tremendously potent authority given to the Senate. The Senate Majority Leader has the unilateral ability to stand up and say if you defy Congress, if you defy the constitution, if you defy the American people, none of your nominees will be confirmed.”
 
“Step number two, we need to use the power of the purse, and the most potent power congress has. When we come back in January with a new Congress, we need to systematically pass appropriations legislations funding the Department of Defense, funding the VA, funding one department after another after another and then once the vital functions are funded. We need to pass appropriations with writers specifically limiting the power of the Congress and the power of the President to spend money on illegal amnesty.”

###