Ted Cruz

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Ted Cruz
Texas Solicitor General
In office
2003 – May 2008
Succeeded by James C. Ho
Personal details
Born December 22, 1970 (1970-12-22) (age 41)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada[1]
Political party Republican
Spouse(s) Heidi Suzanne Cruz
Children Caroline Camille
Catherine Christiane
Residence Houston, Texas
Alma mater Princeton University
Harvard Law School
Profession Attorney
Religion Southern Baptist[2]
Website tedcruz.org

Rafael Edward "Ted" Cruz (born December 22, 1970) is the former Solicitor General of Texas, a position he held from 2003 to May 2008. Cruz was appointed by Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott. He was the first Hispanic Solicitor General in Texas, the youngest Solicitor General in America and the longest to hold the position in Texas. He is currently a partner at the law firm Morgan, Lewis & Bockius, where he leads the firm’s U.S. Supreme Court and national Appellate Litigation practice.[3] He is also a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party nomination for the United States Senate.[4]

Cruz previously served as the Director of the Office of Policy Planning at the Federal Trade Commission, an Associate Deputy Attorney General at the United States Department of Justice, and as Domestic Policy Advisor to President George W. Bush on the 2000 Bush-Cheney campaign. In addition, from 2004-2009 Cruz has served as an Adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Texas School of Law, where he teaches U.S. Supreme Court Litigation.

Contents

[edit] Early life and education

Cruz was born to a Cuban-American father and an American mother in Calgary, Alberta, where his parents were working in the oil business.[1]

Cruz attended high school at Faith West Academy in Katy, Texas,[5] and then graduated from Second Baptist High School in Houston, Texas.

Cruz earned his A.B. from Princeton University and his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. While at Princeton, he was one of North America's top-ranked parliamentary debaters, winning the top speaker award at both the 1992 U.S. National Debating Championship and the 1992 North American Debating Championship. In 1992, he was named Speaker of the Year and Team of the Year (with his debate partner, David Panton) by the American Parliamentary Debate Association. Cruz was also a semi-finalist at the 1995 World Universities Debating Championship.[6]

Cruz graduated magna cum laude from Harvard Law School. He was a Primary Editor of the Harvard Law Review, an Executive Editor of the Harvard Journal of Law & Public Policy, and a Founding Editor of the Harvard Latino Law Review.

[edit] Legal career

Cruz also served as a law clerk to William Rehnquist, then-Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of the United States, and J. Michael Luttig of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.[7] Cruz was the first Hispanic ever to clerk for a Chief Justice of the United States.[8]

Cruz has authored more than 80 briefs before the United States Supreme Court and presented 43 oral arguments, including 9 before the United States Supreme Court.

In the landmark case of District of Columbia v. Heller, Cruz assembled a coalition of 31 states in defense of the principle that the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution guarantees an individual right to keep and bear arms.[9] Cruz also presented oral argument for the amici states in the companion case to Heller before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit.

In addition to his victory in Heller, Cruz has successfully defended the Ten Commandments monument on the Texas State Capitol grounds, the recitation of the Pledge of Allegiance in public schools and the 2003 Texas redistricting plan.[10]

Cruz also successfully defended, in Medellin v. Texas, the State of Texas against an attempt by the International Court of Justice to re-open the criminal convictions of 51 murderers on death row throughout the United States.[11]

[edit] 2012 U.S. Senate election

Main article: United States Senate election in Texas, 2012

On January 19, 2011, following an announcement that U.S. Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison would not seek reelection, Cruz announced via blogger conference call his candidacy for the United States Senate.[4]

Cruz has been endorsed by David Barton, founder and president of WallBuilders,[12] the Club for Growth, a conservative political action committee,[13] Erick Erickson, editor of prominent conservative blog RedState,[14] the FreedomWorks for America super PAC,[15] Princeton University professor Robert P. George,[16] nationally syndicated radio host Mark Levin,[17] Former Attorney General Edwin Meese[18], Tea Party Express[19], Young Conservatives of Texas[20], and Ted is currently the only Senate candidate in the nation to have the support of sitting U.S. Senators Jim DeMint[21], Mike Lee[22], Rand Paul[23], and Pat Toomey[24].

[edit] Personal life

Cruz was born and spend the first four years of his life in Calgary, Alberta, Canada before his parents returned to Houston, Texas. His father, after fighting for Fidel Castro in the Cuban Revolution and being jailed and tortured by the Batista regime,[25] moved to Austin in 1957 to study at the University of Texas. He spoke no English and had $100 sewn into his underwear.[26] The elder Cruz worked his way through school as a dishwasher making 50 cents an hour. Cruz’s mother, who was from Houston, was the first person in her family ever to go to college. She earned a math degree at Rice University in the 1950s, working summers at Foley’s and Shell. "I'm Cuban, Irish, and Italian, and yet somehow I ended up Southern Baptist."[27] Cruz is married to Heidi Suzanne Cruz. They have two daughters, Caroline Camille and Catherine Christiane.

[edit] Honors and awards

  • "America's Leading Lawyers for Business," Chambers USA (2009 & 2010)
  • "50 Most Influential Minority Lawyers in America," National Law Journal (2008)
  • "50 Best Litigators Under 45 in America," American Lawyer Magazine (2007)
  • "25 Greatest Texas Lawyers of the Past Quarter Century," Texas Lawyer (2010)
  • "Impact Player of the Year for 2006," Texas Lawyer
  • "100 Most Influential Hispanics in America," Hispanic Business Magazine (1999 and 2000)
  • "20 Young Hispanic Americans on the Rise," Newsweek Magazine (1999)
  • Award for Distinguished Service, Federal Trade Commission (2003)
  • Traphagen Distinguished Alumnus, Harvard Law School
  • Primary Editor, Harvard Law Review
  • Executive Editor, Harvard Journal of Law and Public Policy
  • Founding Editor, Harvard Latino Law Review
  • John M. Olin Fellow in Law and Economics, Harvard Law School

[edit] See also

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[edit] References

  1. ^ a b Kate Zernike (18 November 2011). "A Test for the Tea Party in Texas Senate Race". New York Times. http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/18/us/politics/ted-cruz-is-a-test-for-the-tea-party-in-texas-race.html?_r=1. Retrieved 18 November 2011. 
  2. ^ Cruz, Ted (2012-02-09). Hugh Hewitt Show. Interview with Hugh Hewitt. 
  3. ^ Passarella, Gina (2008-05-06). "Morgan Lewis Adds Texas Solicitor General". Law.com. http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202421154053. Retrieved 2011-06-02. 
  4. ^ a b "Ted Cruz Makes it a New Game for U.S. Senate in Texas". RedState web site. 2011-01-19. http://www.redstate.com/hogan/2011/01/19/ted-cruz-makes-it-a-new-game-for-us-senate-in-texas/. Retrieved 2011-01-19. 
  5. ^ Eriksen, Helen (2005-08-11). "Solicitor general carries "supreme" weight with Katy roots". Houston Chronicle web site. http://blogs.chron.com/insidekaty/archives/2005/08/supreme_court_l.html. Retrieved 2009-02-08. 
  6. ^ "Australians win debate at Princeton; A Singapore woman won the award for best speaker; English is not her native language". Philadelphia Inquirer ("But the Harvard Law team was composed of two Princeton grads Ted Cruz and David Panton both Class of '92."). 1995=01-10. 
  7. ^ "R. (Ted) Edward Cruz > Attorney Biography > Lawyers". Morgan, Lewis & Bockius. 2011-03-29. http://www.morganlewis.com/bios/tcruz. Retrieved 2011-06-02. 
  8. ^ Jeffery, Terry. Ted Cruz: New Voice for the American Dream, Townhall.com, May 25, 2011.
  9. ^ Block, Melissa (March 14, 2008). "D.C. Gun Ban Critic: Court Must Clarify Constitution". NPR. http://www.npr.org/templates/transcript/transcript.php?storyId=88251874. 
  10. ^ Reinert, Patty (June 28, 2006). "Most of Texas' redistricting map upheld". Houston Chronicle. http://www.chron.com/disp/story.mpl/metropolitan/4009070.html. 
  11. ^ "Bio". Ted Cruz. http://www.tedcruz.org/page/Bio.aspx. Retrieved 2011-06-02. 
  12. ^ "David Barton, Paul Pressler Endorse Cruz for Senate". June 13, 2011. http://www.tedcruz.org/post/2011/06/13/David-Barton-Paul-Pressler-Endorse-Cruz-for-Senate.aspx. 
  13. ^ Toeplitz, Shira (June 2, 2011). "Club for Growth Picks Texas Senate Favorite". Roll Call Politics. http://www.rollcall.com/news/Club-for-Growth-Picks-Texas-Senate-Favorite-206144-1.html. 
  14. ^ Erickson, Erick (June 2, 2011). "Ted Cruz for Senate". RedState. http://www.redstate.com/erick/2011/06/02/ted-cruz-for-senate-in-texas/. 
  15. ^ "FreedomWorks PAC Endorses Conservative Candidate Ted Cruz in the Texas Senate Race". June 2, 2011. http://pac.freedomworks.org/press-releases/freedomworks-pac-endorses-conservative-candidate-ted-cruz-in-the-texas-senate-race. 
  16. ^ George, Robert (June 6, 2011). "Ted Cruz for Senate". https://www.facebook.com/note.php?note_id=2044928915498. 
  17. ^ . June 2, 2011. http://www.tedcruz.org/page/endorsements.aspx. 
  18. ^ "Join Conservative Stalwarts Shackelford, Meese". June 9, 2011. http://www.tedcruz.org/post/2011/06/09/Join-Conservative-Stalwarts-Shackelford-Meese.aspx. 
  19. ^ http://www.star-telegram.com/2012/01/25/3688179/tea-party-express-endorses-ted.html
  20. ^ http://www.yct.org/yct-endorses-ted-cruz-for-u-s-senate/
  21. ^ http://hotlineoncall.nationaljournal.com/archives/2011/11/for-demint-a-fe.php
  22. ^ http://www.politico.com/blogs/davidcatanese/0311/Sen_Lee_backs_Ted_Cruz_in_Texas.html?showall
  23. ^ "Tea Party Stalwart Rand Paul Backs Cruz Over Dewhurst in Senate Race". July 26, 2011. http://blogs.star-telegram.com/politex/2011/07/tea-party-stalwart-rand-paul-backs-cruz-over-dewhurst-in-senate-race.html. 
  24. ^ http://www.tedcruz.org/endorsements/2011/04/28/senator-pat-toomey/
  25. ^ http://news.yahoo.com/texas-gop-senate-candidate-says-no-rubio-father-151607155.html
  26. ^ "When my Dad came to Austin in 1957, as a teenage immigrant from Cuba bound for the University of Texas, he spoke no English and had $100 sewn into his underwear. He worked his way through school as a dishwasher making 50 cents an hour, just as my Mom – the first person in her family ever to go to college – earned her math degree at Rice in the 1950s, working summers at Foley’s and Shell." Ted Cruz, http://www.tedcruz.org/page/Conservative-Principles.aspx, accessed 19 June 2011.
  27. ^ Cruz, Ted (2012-02-09). Hugh Hewitt Show. Interview with Hugh Hewitt. 

[edit] External links

Texas State Solicitors General
Greg Coleman (1999–2001)  · Julie Parsley (2001–2002)  · Ted Cruz (2003–2008)  · James C. Ho (2008–present)
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ted_Cruz&oldid=477431509"
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