Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz called a Wednesday report that he is seriously considering a presidential bid in 2016 “wild speculation.”
On Wednesday, National Review reported that “friends and confidants” of the freshman senator said he was taking a very hard look jumping into the presidential fray, where he could fill a void if other conservative favorites like Florida Sen. Marco Rubio and House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan lose favor for supporting immigration reform.
Speculation that Cruz is thinking about a presidential run has swirled for months, amplified by Cruz’s own actions. In February, he headlined a Republican dinner in Ohio, a must-win state for any presidential hopeful. This weekend, he is the featured speaker at a Republican dinner in the early primary state of South Carolina.
But Cruz swatted down the rumors Wednesday in a Facebook post, saying his focus remains on serving as a senator.
“In my short tenure, my focus has been — and will remain — on two things: fighting for conservative principles in the Senate, and working to help elect strong conservatives to win a majority in the Senate in 2014. The Senate is the battlefield to defend liberty,” he wrote.
“I was elected because thousands of grassroots conservatives came together to protect the Constitution, shrink the federal government, and promote growth and opportunity. It is a continued source of amazement that the simple fact that I am working hard with like-minded Senators to keep my promise is seen as newsworthy and cause for wild speculation,” he concluded.
The Canadian-born senator’s eligibility to be president has been questioned by some, but a spokesman for Cruz told the Washington Examiner that he “is a U.S. citizen by birth, having been born in Calgary to an American-born mother,” and the law would appear to bear him out.