Former Iowa Democrat Rep. says recent US presidential candidates similar on major issues, role and size of gov., leaving Americans without "a clear choice." Candidate Ted Cruz opposite a Democrat would provide "a real election and real choices...what a representative democracy is supposed to be about"-Nagle, Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier

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5/17/15, "Cruz nomination would set up a clear choice," The Waterloo-Cedar Falls Courier ^  Former Rep. Dave Nagle (D-Iowa)

"Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas is running for president. His candidacy should not be overlooked.

Many are not familiar with him, which is not surprising because for most of Iowa it is still very early in the caucus process. But the senator has attributes that may distinguish him from an unusually crowded field of GOP contenders. 

First, he went to Harvard. No, I am not writing about Ted Kennedy, I am saying this fellow actually went to not just Harvard, but the Harvard Law School after doing his undergraduate work at Princeton University. He is well educated and very intelligent. For example, he served for a period of time as the solicitor general for the state of Texas and you do not argue and win cases in front of the United States Supreme Court without being an extraordinarily competent attorney.
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He is conservative, very conservative, but I don’t dislike that aspect of him. He is a true reflection of his well-formed political ideology. Those who run for office as liberal or conservative can be divided into two classes: individuals who have thought and carefully arrived at their political opinions and those I would call “lip sync” wonders, whose views are obtained by election opportunity, saying what they think needs to be said and then voting to retain their public position. Ted Cruz is not the latter; he certainly is the former. 

Further, he is an excellent debater, having honed his skills from grade school on up through college and then into the practice of law. 

For a conservative, his views are fairly standard. He would, among other things, repeal Obamacare, abolish the IRS, obviously cut government spending, strongly support Israel and is decidedly in favor of a strong military for the U.S. In addition, his father is Cuban, which may open a door for the Republican Party to crack into the Hispanic voting bloc. 

Can he win the Republican nomination? I don’t know. It is a crowded field, particularly on the right. Cruz is focusing his early attention on tea party members, social conservatives and evangelicals. It’s noted that he has said the problem has been not enough evangelicals have been voting. It would be unrealistic to expect that he moves to court moderates, people he has described as “the mushy middle.” 

According to the latest statistics, approximately 40 percent of Iowa Republicans are self-described conservatives, social, religious or libertarian. He will have a fight with Scott Walker, Mike Huckabee, Rick Santorum and a host of others to emerge as their favorite and then will have to confront Jeb Bush in a less friendly atmosphere in New Hampshire, where independents can vote. But he is a new face, he is bright and Iowans have a history of taking the unexpected candidate and propelling that individual into the national spotlight. 

But the one real reason I think a Cruz presidential campaign would be good for the country is this: A clear choice. 

Most times, after the presidential nominating process is completed, a strange thing happens. The candidate that was the darling of the left or the favorite son of the right suddenly discovers he or she can’t remember what they said in January, it now being September and really they are in their heart simply a moderate, attempting to move the needle on the dial to 51 percent of the vote. 

As a nation right now, we are badly divided. Neither party has a clear mandate for their policies. As a result, we don’t move too much one way or the other, but this in fact means we are not moving at all. 

We are stuck, with congressional approval ratings at historic lows. Frustration exists with the Iowa Legislature’s inability to find a common ground on educational funding, among other issues. Strange as it may sound, legislative bodies do reflect public opinion and right now, the country is badly divided on the role and size of government, more so federal than state but really both. 

Sometimes presidential elections can determine the country’s future. I think 1940 was one such election. Franklin D. Roosevelt had pushed through the reinstatement of the draft by one vote in the House of Representatives, and America commenced preparation for the coming war. Ronald Reagan turning the country to the right in 1980 is another example. But for this to happen, whether we go left or right, depends on the voting public being presented with a clear choice, and Ted Cruz on the Republican side clearly reflects this opportunity. 

Now if the Democrats will do the same thing, we will have a real election and real choices, which is, after all, what a representative democracy is supposed to be about." via Free Rep.
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Comment: The "divided nation" he speaks of is Washington DC vs the rest of America. There's no division between the two political parties-occasional sound bites to the contrary are just for show. Even Soros said there isn't much difference between Romney and Obama. (RomneyCare preceded ObamaCare, CO2 trading was set up in Mass. by Romney). The Beltway crowd gets plenty "done" via executive agencies which make laws out of reach of voters.

1/30/2012, "George Soros: Not "Much Difference" Between Romney And Obama," Real Clear Politics

"Billionaire investor George Soros explains why there wouldn't be much difference for Wall Street between President Obama and Mitt Romney....

"If it's between Obama and Romney, there isn't all that much difference except for the crowd that they bring with them," George Soros told Reuters in Davos, Switzerland.

"So it won't be that great a difference and I think there won't be a great deal of enthusiasm on either side of the battleground. It will be more civilised than the previous elections have been," he also said."


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"The divide that exists in our country isn’t between political parties – it’s between Washington and the rest of us." Sen. Ted Cruz, 3/25/15



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