During a Wednesday evening speaking gig at Stanford University…former Speaker of the House [John Boehner] absolutely ripped into his ex-nemesis Ted Cruz, likening him to Satan…. “I have Democrat friends and Republican friends. I get along with almost everyone, but I have never worked with a more miserable son of a bitch in my life,” he said, according to The Stanford Daily. “The Bible says beware of false prophets. And there are people out there, you know, spreading noise about how much can get done. I mean this whole notion that we’re going to shut down the government to get rid of Obamacare in 2013—this plan never had a chance,” Boehner said. At a Republican fundraiser that same year, Boehner reportedly referred to Cruz as “jackass.”
It’s astonishing that a man almost universally regarded with disdain and revulsion by his colleagues and so clearly objectionable, dogmatic, and thoroughly self-absorbed is one of three remaining candidates for the GOP Presidential nomination. How could someone that John Boehner, normally (at least publicly) someone who errs on the side of diplomacy, calls “a miserable son of a bitch” be running such a strong campaign? How can someone so undeniably unlikable, smarmy, and hyper-religious be seriously considered a possible GOP nominee? How is it that a Senator in the clutches of a Messiah complex and possessed of undeniably sociopathic tendencies is even able to sniff the possibility of sitting behind the big desk in the Oval Office? Somehow he’s managed to garner the support of something in the neighborhood of 1/3 of GOP primary voters. Are Republicans really so undemanding…or are they truly happy to find someone so inflexibly hyper-religious? Could it be that White Christian America really is just that hateful, intolerant, and afraid of those not like themselves?
To mention Cruz in the same breath as Satan hardly seems a stretch when you consider some of his positions and tactics. From virtually the moment he set foot on Capitol Hill, Cruz has- perhaps deliberately, perhaps not- alienated virtually every sentient being even tangentially associated with Congress. He seems to specialize in burning bridges, double-dealing, and placing his own self-interest above any and all other considerations. His dishonesty and utter lack of integrity are breathtaking.
I suppose you can do that sort of thing when your father and wife are convinced- and have convinced you- that you’re The Chosen One ©, the one person who can turn America back onto the path of godliness and righteousness. That you’re promising to bomb the Middle East to find out if sand glows as part of that process seems but a mere quirk that serves only to humanize you, no?
Cruz may claim to be a man of God and a true Christian, but when a former Speaker of the House openly refers to him as “Lucifer in the flesh,” it might be a clue for Republican voters to look at him a bit more critically…something which has yet to occur. To characterize Cruz as a “false prophet” doesn’t begin to do justice to a man who ultimately worships nothing more than himself and his own self-interest. I’m not certain even God would claim him as His own. Not that such a thing would stop him from claiming the imprimatur of the Almighty, of course. That’s the sort of thing one does when the Prime Directive revolves around the pursuit of power and control by whatever means necessary. Being an almost universally despised (barely) human being just adds to the challenge.
