In his acceptance speech at the Republican National Convention in 1964, Barry Goldwater argued "Extremism in defense of liberty is no vice. ... Moderation in defense of justice is no virtue." (youtube.com/watch?v=E9buEI8SgwU)
Like many other Americans at the time -- when most adult Americans believed in American "exceptionalism" and considered America the greatest country on earth -- I was mildly amused by his words. In those days, I was a young Jack Kennedy/Harry S. Truman Democrat. I didn't realize that at the time, that in listening to Sen. Goldwater's speech, I was listening to the beginning of modern-day conservatism.
In his book, "The Conscience of a Conservative," (1960) Goldwater wrote "I ... propose to extend freedom. ... "My aim is not to pass laws, but to repeal them. ... not to inaugurate new programs, but to cancel old ones that do violence to the Constitution, or that have failed their purpose, or that impose on the people an unwarranted financial burden. ...
"And if I should later be attacked for neglecting my constituents' 'interests,' I shall reply that I was informed that their main interest is liberty and that in that cause I am doing the very best I can."
Sen. Goldwater was saying the first and most important duty an American president was to guarantee is the birthright of the American people: Liberty.
Now, Sen. Cruz proclaims a desire to snatch the banner Goldwater dropped as he passed from the political scene: And the left savages him. Consider this tidbit from the Huffington Post:
"Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is the best thing that has happened to Democrats since 'Brownie' handled Katrina for Bush 43, and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) is playing him like a violin. Let him talk, and the more voters who hear Cruz, the better for Democrats.
"Cruz is not only the biggest vanity player in Washington (and that is saying something!), and he is not only a charlatan ... he is a walking advertisement for the weird ring of Republicans -- I call them Banana Republicans -- who could well become a death knell for Republicans in 2014 and 2016."
But is Sen. Cruz really the stupid buffoon, that the "left" and The Huffington Post tells us he is? Not if his academic record is any indication.
Sen. Cruz was valedictorian of his high school class, graduated cum laude from Princeton, and magna cum laude from Harvard Law School. Allan Dershowitz, a "lion of the left," has said that "Cruz was off-the-charts brilliant." Cruz clerked for the Chief Justice of the U.S. William Rehnquist.
Clerking for the chief justice is the most prestigious position available to a law school grad. It is not available to the stupid.
So the real issue is, is Cruz a "charlatan," a "weirdo" or "bananas?" Is he "publicity hound," or does he really believe in what he says?
Recently, a friend of mine sent me a video -- a nine-minute speech made by Ted Cruz's father, Rafeal Cruz. I provide the link below. I defy you to watch Cruz's father and come away with the "take" that Ted Cruz is an insincere "vanity player." On the other hand, it is very easy to come to the conclusion that Ted Cruz, like his father, Rafeal Cruz, has as his first value "liberty."
Rafael Cruz is a refugee from Cuba. He went to jail and was beaten for protesting the oppressive dictatorship of Fulgencio Batista. He welcomed the revolution that brought Fidel Castro to power, but then when Castro began seizing private property and suppressing dissenters, he fled to the U.S. at age 18 -- with no money and unable to speak English. Listen to what the senior Cruz says and how he feels about America. Perhaps it takes an immigrant and political refugee to explain to Americans what America really stands for -- "liberty" and "opportunity." And consider how easily this most basic of human rights can be lost (youtube.com/watch?v=0Ym4Xt0T6fM feature=player_embedded).
So is Ted Cruz a "wacko bird" as John McCain says, or is he "his father's son?"
It has been wisely said that "social justice can be obtained only in respecting the transcendent dignity of man. The human person represents the ultimate end of society, which is ordered to him. Respect for the human person entails respect for the rights that flow from his dignity as a creature. These rights are prior to society and must be recognized by it."
Without freedom of the individual, there is no social justice.
So, if that is what Ted Cruz really believes, he is no "humbug." His political ideas deserve careful examination -- at least until he proves himself to be another Washington political hack.
In America, when serious men have an important point to make, they seek the optimal public forum. To call attention to his cause, the Rev. Martin Luther King and his supporters took to the streets. When Abraham Lincoln believed the Dred Scott decision was immoral and wrong, he denounced it in the Lincoln/Douglas debates, even though after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling, Dred Scott became "the law of the land."
When U.S. senators -- men such as Webster, Clay and Calhoun -- have believed that legislation undermines the welfare of the American people, for 200 years they have taken to the floor of the Senate. What better way does a senator have to call attention to his point than to take to the will of the Senate, and hold the floor until press and public are forced to notice?
Posted Online: Oct. 08, 2013, 11:00 pm - Quad-Cities Online
by John Donald O'Shea
Copyright 2013
John Donald O'Shea
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