Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX), once considered a reliable ally of President Trump’s “America First” agenda, is finding himself at odds with the conservative base after publicly questioning the president’s latest push to level the global playing field through strong tariffs.
Cruz’s remarks—delivered shortly after Trump’s April 2nd Liberation Day speech—have ignited a firestorm among Trump supporters, many of whom see the senator’s comments as a betrayal of the movement that put America’s workers and industries first.
In his speech, President Trump laid out a sweeping plan to impose significant tariffs on nearly every nation, with particular emphasis on countering China’s one-sided trade practices. The president cited China’s decades-long strategy of flooding American markets with cheap goods while slapping heavy duties on U.S. exports—a system that’s gutted American manufacturing and left workers behind.
But instead of applauding Trump’s decisive action, Cruz suggested tariffs should be nothing more than a temporary negotiating tactic. “If President Trump uses this moment as leverage, he’s got an extraordinary opportunity to lower tariffs of every country on earth to U.S. goods,” Cruz said. While some interpreted that as hopeful optimism, others saw it as a veiled critique of the president’s willingness to take bold, long-term steps to protect American jobs.
Cruz went even further in a Fox News interview, saying, “Tariffs are a tax on consumers, and I’m not a fan of jacking up taxes on American consumers… my hope is these tariffs are short-lived.” He even framed the Trump White House as being pulled between “angels and demons,” suggesting that some advisors are pushing the president toward economic extremism.
The backlash from the conservative base was swift and unforgiving.
“TED ARE YOU DUMB???” one frustrated Trump voter posted on X. “We are NOT going to be taken advantage of again.”
Another chimed in, “You and the others are frauds. We voted for this. It’s time to bring our manufacturing back home.”
Many saw Cruz’s comments as tone-deaf and dangerously close to echoing left-wing talking points. The irony wasn’t lost on voters who remember decades of one-sided trade deals supported by both parties that devastated American jobs and communities.
“Where was this concern when they tariffed America for years?” one user demanded. “Honestly, you represent Americans—or at least you’re supposed to.”
While Cruz may be attempting to thread the needle between traditional free-market conservatism and Trump’s populist movement, the reality is clear: Republican voters have spoken. They want leadership that fights for American sovereignty, not politicians who fold under pressure from globalist economic orthodoxy.
One Trump supporter summed it up best: “President Trump is doing the exact right thing. He is stopping the American economy from being destroyed and making sure we can win the Cold War with the CCP. Thank Heaven for President Trump.”
If Senator Cruz is truly interested in representing the people of Texas and the conservative movement at large, he’d do well to remember who put him in office—and why. The days of appeasement and compromise with global powers are over. Trump’s bold America First economic plan is not just policy—it’s the will of the people.
