Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) showed he was more than capable of combating attacks from the liberal hosts of ABC’s The View, Monday, while promoting his new book about the Supreme Court entitled, One Vote Away. While the questions were hostile, the hosts didn’t melt down in rage as they typically do until the very end when Cruz triggered Joy Behar for countering her coronavirus narrative.
The hosts first brought up the media’s latest attack on Trump--The New York Times scoop on what he allegedly paid in taxes. Cruz frustrated the hosts by pointing out that even if it’s true, this isn’t a top issue for most Republican voters, and the source made him skeptical:
It's not complicated that The New York Times and the media hates the president and they want to distract from frankly I think the Supreme Court vacancy we have in front of us is a much more important issue because it impacts -- the people I hear from care about our Constitutional rights. They care about free speech. They care about religious liberty, and I think we ought to be focusing on issues that impact people's lives, not just the relentless attacks on the president which seems to be the only thing the media wants to cover.
Whoopi Goldberg confronted Cruz on “changing his mind” about filling a court vacancy in 2016. Cruz left the hosts flat footed as he explained the historical precedent about how vacancies aren’t typically filled when the presidency and Senate are held by two different parties, as they were four years ago. As each host tried and failed to trap the Republican Senator with liberal talking points, Joy Behar lost her patience at the end of the interview when talking about shutdowns and coronavirus.
She fretted about how Florida’s Governor Ron DeSantis had let bars and restaurants open back up and asked him if Texas would do the same. Cruz advocated for opening the economy back up by pointing out how the death rate has been much lower in Florida and Texas than in Democrat-run states like New York and New Jersey. As soon as he brought up Andrew Cuomo’s nursing home scandal, Behar tried to silence him:
TED CRUZ: [N]ew York in particular has led the country in death rate, and I think it had a lot to do with the democratic governor there -- Governor Cuomo sending people who had COVID into nursing homes.
BEHAR: That's not true.
CRUZ: Well, the death rate is three times as high as the death rate in Florida and Texas.
BEHAR: I asked you about DeSantis. Answer me about DeSantis, please.
CRUZ: I'm sorry?
BEHAR: I'm talking about -- I'm talking about Florida right now, not New York. New York got hit very early, and a lot of people were coming in without any kind of sanctions on it.
CRUZ: But the governor's policy made a difference--
BEHAR: Tell me about Florida. Let's get what you think about DeSantis.
CRUZ: The policy of the governors of New York and New Jersey of sending people who were covid positive into nursing homes--
BEHAR: Deflection.
CRUZ: ---Was catastrophic, and --
BEHAR: You are deflecting, sir.
CRUZ: No. I'm saying --
BEHAR: You are deflecting the question!
The frustrated hosts shut down the interview shortly after this, realizing their guest had outsmarted their traps.
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Read the transcript of the relevant exchange, below:
The View
9/28/2020
JOY BEHAR: So senator, just a few minutes ago you said and correctly, the country is suffering. There are many people out of work, but you would like to open safely, follow the science, protect small business and all of that, but Republican Florida Governor DeSantis for example, recently lifted all coronavirus restrictions on businesses, allowing bars and restaurants to open at full capacity without a mask mandate. He said they won't be closing anything going forward. Now what's your response to Governor DeSantis's policy, one, and would you do the same thing in Texas if you could?
TED CRUZ: So yes, we should reopen, and I actually think if you look at Florida, and if you look at Texas, the death rates have been much, much lower there than for example, states like New York, New Jersey, states with democratic governors where the death rates have been enormously through the roof. New York in particular has led the country in death rate, and I think it had a lot to do with the democratic governor there -- Governor Cuomo sending people who had COVID into nursing homes.
BEHAR: That's not true.
CRUZ: Well, the death rate is three times as high as the death rate in Florida and Texas.
BEHAR: I asked you about DeSantis. Answer me about DeSantis, please.
CRUZ: I'm sorry?
BEHAR: I'm talking about -- I'm talking about Florida right now, not New York. New York got hit very early, and a lot of people were coming in without any kind of sanctions on it.
CRUZ: But the governor's policy made a difference--
BEHAR: Tell me about Florida. Let's get what you think about DeSantis.
CRUZ: The policy of the governors of New York and New Jersey of sending people who were COVID positive into nursing homes--
BEHAR: Deflection.
CRUZ: - Was catastrophic, and --
BEHAR:You are deflecting, sir.
CRUZ: No. I'm saying --
BEHAR: You are deflecting the question. Go forward.
SARA HAINES: Let me jump in here. It's a slight pivot here.
WHOOPI GOLDBERG: I would like to jump in.
HAINES: Go ahead, Whoopi. Go ahead.
WHOOPI: I just wanted to say, I do want to point out that had the man who is running the country right now given us this information in January when he had it, when we could have --
BEHAR: Right.
WHOOPI: Maybe done something a little differently, it might have worked differently. I wanted to point that out. It's not about who's, you know, whose people died more. People died, and they didn't have to. Go ahead, Sara.
HAINES: Well, I just wanted to really quick ask Senator Cruz, you know, just the day after the late Justice Ginsburg laid in state at the capitol, Senate Republicans started selling notorious A.C.B. T-shirts. Do you think that was in poor taste considering Justice Ginsburg had to have a career to build up that status? That the faces are not just interchangeable.
CRUZ: I knew Justice Ginsburg. She was brilliant. She was a legendary supreme court advocate, and by any measure, one of the most consequential justices in history. I would encourage you -- I recognize the hosts of this show, y'all's politics are different than mine, and I think it's actually good we're having a conversation. Too often, left and right don't talk to each other and we just kind of yell at each other, and one thing I would suggest if you want to understand why so many millions of Americans care passionately about the supreme court and about justices who will protect free speech and religious liberty and the second amendment, I would encourage you actually to read the book I just came out with, "One Vote Away”---
SUNNY HOSTIN: I read it...
