Ted Cruz on Rising Support for Socialism: 'It Reflects a Real Failure on the Part of All of Us'

WASHINGTON — Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) said the rising support among the American electorate for certain forms of socialism “reflects a real failure on the part of all of us” to talk about the harm socialist economic policies have caused.

Cruz, a former GOP presidential candidate, was asked about a recent Gallup poll that found 4 in 10 Americans support “some form of socialism.”

“I think that reflects a real failure on the part of all of us to talk about the real facts about socialism — socialism has been a manifest disaster all across the globe. It has produced misery and poverty and suffering for billions of people,” Cruz said. “Poll numbers like that encourage all of us to do a better job winning people’s hearts and minds and making the basic case for why the free market best enables people to climb the economic latter.”

Cruz continued, “Our educational systems are not doing the jobs they should in terms of teaching about American free enterprise, about the Constitution, about the basic principles upon which America was founded and built and we need to do a much better job.”