Back in the Senate, Cruz could lay the foundation for 2020
SMU Political Science Professor Cal Jillson talks about Sen. Ted Cruz possibly making another run for president in 2020.
By Kevin Diaz
WASHINGTON – There may be no Ted Cruz 2.0. Instead, all signs point to Cruz 2020.
The first clue came in a final pep talk to dispirited campaign staffers last week in Houston, where Cruz recalled Ronald Reagan's first failed White House bid in 1976, a prelude to his victory in 1980.
"Reagan in 1976 came up short," Cruz told them. "I suspect at that convention more than a few tears were shed. It's going to be our task to go forward and continue fighting." . . .
Outside political analysts say the Senate provides the perfect foil for a national political figure bent on highlighting Washington dysfunction.
"The Senate allows you to stay in the spotlight, even if your day-to-day life is very frustrating," said Cal Jillson, a political scientist at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.
At the same time, Jillson is bearish on Cruz's prospects of enacting meaningful tax reforms, a project that largely has eluded far more experienced lawmakers with good relationships in Congress, including House Speaker Paul Ryan and Texas Republican Kevin Brady, chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee.
Moving legislation in the famously chummy Senate often depends on playing nice with colleagues – not something for which Cruz is known. "Judging from his first day back, he's not going to make many changes in his personal style or demeanor, which almost guarantees he'll get next to almost nothing done," Jillson said.