Cruz went on to clarify that his personal faith is not his only justification for supporting Israel. He said, “As an elected official, I don’t give that as the reason we should support Israel.”
“The reason that I am the leading defender of Israel is because Israel is our strongest ally in the Middle East, an incredibly troubled part of the world,” said Cruz. “And supporting Israel benefits America.”
Ted Cruz on Speaking Out for International Religious Liberty
As Cruz and Carlson continued to discuss American intervention in global conflicts, Cruz said, “I am happy to highlight the brutality, the oppression, the human rights abuses of regimes, even though I don’t want to invade them.”
Cruz went on to recount the story of Mariam Ibrahim, a Sudanese religious freedom activist who was persecuted for her Christian faith. Cruz said he “repeatedly went to the Senate floor and shined a light on the government of Sudan. It was corrupt. It was evil.”
“There is power to speaking out,” Cruz said. “Ultimately, there was enough international condemnation [that] the government of Sudan let her go.” Cruz went on to say that he met Ibrahim and asked her how she maintained her faith in the face of what seemed like certain death. Cruz recalled her saying, “Jesus was with me.”
“Thankfully, you and I have not faced that circumstance,” said Cruz. Carlson replied with a smirk, “There’s still time.”
“There is, and I hope we don’t,” said Cruz.
