Ted Cruz: podcast appearances and interviews

Rafael Edward Cruz, born December 22, 1970, is an American politician and attorney serving as the junior United States senator from Texas since 2013. A member of the Republican Party, Cruz previously held the position of solicitor general of Texas from 2003 to 2008. He graduated from Princeton University with a Bachelor of Arts degree and earned a Juris Doctor from Harvard Law School. Following his education, Cruz pursued a career in politics and served as a policy advisor in the George W. Bush administration. He was appointed as solicitor general of Texas in 2003 by Texas attorney general Greg Abbott, a role he held until 2008. Cruz was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 2012, making him the first Hispanic American to serve as a senator from Texas. Throughout his tenure, Cruz has been involved in significant legislative efforts, including playing a leading role in the 2013 federal government shutdown and unsuccessfully seeking to defund the Affordable Care Act. He was reelected in 2018 and again in 2024 in close races. In 2025, Cruz drafted and led the passage of the TAKE IT DOWN Act, signed into law by President Donald Trump. He introduced a bill to create Trump accounts in May 2025. Cruz also ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, emerging as a notable contender during a competitive primary. Initially withholding his endorsement after Trump's nomination, Cruz later supported Trump during his presidency. When John Cornyn leaves office in 2027, Cruz is set to become Texas’s senior senator.