Daily Beast Nominates Ted Cruz for 'Craziest Member of Congress'

Following Rep. Michele Bachmann’s (R-MN) announcement that she will not seek re-election in 2014, the Daily Beast announced it was looking for a replacement member of the GOP who could carry the mantle of “craziest member of Congress” in her stead.

One of the candidates put forward to hold this title is Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), and the Daily Beast seems willing to rewrite and distort his record to make him fit the bill.

For example, author Caitlin Dixon said Cruz “[attempted] to bring unloaded assault rifles–illegal in D.C.–to a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing to demonstrate the safety and necessity of guns when they’re in the hands of law-abiding citizens.”

However, the truth is that Cruz asked to bring an unloaded deer rifle, not an “assault rifle.” In the end, he didn’t even bring a deer rifle; he only brought a poster. But Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-CA) has used “assault weapons” to make her point in DC, and that doesn’t seem to have raised any eyebrows.

Also, Dixon claimed that Cruz thinks “that pretty much any form of gun control is unconstitutional.” However, he actually believes certain restrictions–like the ban on felons owning guns and bans on guns inside the security parameter of airports–are constitutional. Moreover, he recently co-sponsored legislation with Senator Charles Grassley (R-IA) that would have addressed the criminality of gun trafficking and straw purchasing if passed.

The Daily Beast also repeated allegations that Cruz worked to killed the Hurricane Sandy relief bill. Truth is, he voted against it because of the all the pork tied to it. That’s it. He didn’t work to kill it–he simply voted “no.”