DALLAS — Sen. Ted Cruz characterized threats from the Chinese to shoot down a plane carrying House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan as “an act of war,” telling a conservative gathering in Dallas on Friday that President Joe Biden should have reacted more forcefully.
“The only answer to an enemy of America threatening to murder the speaker of the House of the United States is that would be an act of war, and the result would be devastating,” he said Friday, the second day of the Conservative Political Action Conference.
“Weakness and appeasement that comes from the cheese-eating surrender monkeys is making America and the entire world far less safe,” Cruz added, using an insult that is typically reserved for the French.
Cruz was referencing posts that went viral claiming a representative of the Chinese government threatened to kill the speaker over her visit to Taiwan, which China insists is its territory. But the threats didn’t originate from the Chinese government – they were instead made by a commentator of a state-owned newspaper.
Cruz’s defense of Pelosi ended there. He frequently attacked the speaker during his 15-minute speech Friday, vowing to send her packing after the next election.
“Nancy’s going to get on her broom,” Cruz said before pausing. “No, that’s not right, that’s not right. Nancy’s going to get on her private jet – the USS Broom – and she’s going to fly back to San Francisco. And actually, for her sake, I really hope her husband doesn’t pick her up at the airport.”
Pelosi’s husband, Paul, was arrested near the couple’s Napa vineyard in May on a DUI charge. He’s pleaded not guilty.
“As I look around this room of patriots, I see America’s flag and I see Gadsden flag, and I see the Gonzales battle flag,” Cruz said, “it occurs to me that the Biden FBI believes this is a room of dangerous rebels.”
Cruz was referencing his heated confrontation with FBI Director Christopher Wray on Thursday, after the FBI labeled the Gonzales flag – a black and white banner flown during an 1835 battle in Texas that features a cannon and the words “Come and Take It” – as an extremist symbol.
During a meeting of the Senate Judiciary Committee, Cruz took one of his boots off and slammed it on his desk. “I will self report right now that every day in the Senate, I wear my boots that have the Gonzales battle flag on the back of them,” Cruz told Wray.
The senator was not wearing boots during his speech on Saturday.
Cruz, who had spent much of the morning signing books and taking pictures with supporters along with his father, Rafael, also tried his hand at stand-up comedy on Friday while talking about inflation and high prices.
“It’s so bad, antifa can’t afford bricks. It is so bad, Eric Swalwell can’t afford Chinese dinners. It is so bad (”How bad is it?” some in the crowd responded) that AOC can’t afford fake handcuffs.”
Cruz also ridiculed mask mandates, pronouns and Anthony Fauci’s height before plugging his own podcast.
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