On radio this morning, Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) joined Glenn to discuss what he is doing to ensure those responsible for the IRS targeting of conservatives is held accountable. He also explained why is optimistic about 2016.
“Is anybody doing anything at all on the IRS,” Glenn asked. “I mean weren't we supposed to have some answers by now?”
“We were. And the current state of affairs with the IRS is, is shameful. This week, Glenn, I sent a letter to attorney General Eric Holder pointing out that it's now been eight months since the Department of Treasury Inspector General concluded the IRS had improperly targeted conservative and Republican Party groups,” Sen. Cruz said. “The day that news broke, President Obama told the country he was outraged, he was angry, and he was going to get the bottom of it... in the 8 months that's followed, not a single person been indicted.”
Instead, the person leading the investigation at the Department of Justice has been revealed to be an Obama campaign donor, and the FBI has publically said it does not plan on bringing charges against anyone involved. In his letter to Attorney General Holder, Sen. Cruz asked him to stand up and appoint a special prosecutor with “meaningful independence” to investigate the criminal conduct. Ultimately, Sen. Cruz believes the American people deserve answers so that they can be sure it will never happen again.
“Wait a minute, Senator. It's still happening,” Glenn interjected. “Read the New York Times today. They are targeting Hollywood. I mean this is the new McCarthyism. They are still targeting today and nothing is being done.”
“Actually on this one, I don't think it's a case of complicity as much as it is a case of just being ineffective on this,” Sen. Cruz responded. “In my view, the House of Representatives should appoint a select committee following the Watergate model.”
Sen. Cruz takes issue with the current model of committee hearings in which representatives have just five minutes to try to ask a question – typically without follow up – and the questions have no continuity because it is every man for himself.
“I'll give you an example. The head of the IRS under President Obama testified before the House and it was discovered that his name appeared on the White House visitor’s logs 157 times. Now that's more than any cabinet member under the Obama Administration… The head of the IRS during the comparable period under George W. Bush visited White House twice,” Sen. Cruz said. “Now, if we had a select committee in the House with the chief counsel who was an experienced prosecutor, he would bring that individual in and say, ‘Okay, we're going to walk through all 157 times. I want to see your notes. I want to see your agendas. I want to see who was there. We're going to talk about what was discussed at each one of those meetings.’”
On his website, Sen. Cruz has set up an information portal for concerned citizens who would like to learn more about what is being done in regards to the IRS scandal. The website allows citizens to comment through February on the IRS regulations that are looking to limit free speech.
You can access the website HERE.
Switching gears to the 2016 presidential election, Glenn expressed concern over the plummeting approval rating of the Republican Party. While Sen. Cruz was confident the Obamacare disaster and lack of leadership will haunt Democrats in the midterms and beyond, Glenn wasn’t so sure.
“A period of time I would look to for inspiration and encouragement is the late 1970s,” Sen. Cruz said. “I think where we are now is eerily similar to the late 1970s with a president in office with failed economic policies producing malaise and stagnation with affectless foreign policy and with a Republican Party that has lost its moorings.”
“If we're in the late 1970s that would assume that there was a Ronald Reagan on the horizon, somebody that might say, ‘I want to run for president. I have very strong values, and you can look at my track record,’” Glenn interjected. “Do you know of anybody like that that's thinking of running for president of the United States?”
“Well, look, what I'll say on this is: I hope there are an abundance of Reagans out there,” Sen. Cruz said laughing. “I think every person who might be thinking about it, the path that they ought to follow is to stand up and help lead the fight.”
Check out the rest of the interview below: