Ted Cruz says he’d never heard of Peter King

Politico ^ | 6/18/14 6:41 AM EDT | JONATHAN TOPAZ

[SoConPubbie]

“I don’t know Mr. King,” Cruz, a Texas Republican, said on CNN on Tuesday evening. “I’ve never met him. To be honest, I don’t think I had ever heard of him until he started getting on television attacking me.”

Before the senator’s comments, host Erin Burnett played a clip from last week of King calling Cruz “a fraud” and saying that the October 2013 government shutdown that he championed was ineffective.

(Also on POLITICO: Rep. King fears Cruz, Paul stronger)

In his appearance Tuesday night, Cruz elected not to push back, saying instead that there is too much bickering in Washington on both sides.

“He’s welcome to express his opinions, and he is entitled to them,” Cruz said of King. “I think there are far too many politicians in Washington in both parties that spend their time attacking each other rather than focusing on the substance.”

King has been a harsh critic of Cruz since the government shutdown, which the congressman thinks was harmful to the Republican Party and the country. Last week, after House Majority Leader Eric Cantor’s defeat in his congressional primary to tea party opponent Dave Brat, King said he feared that the result would embolden that wing of the party.

“We can’t allow Eric’s defeat last night to allow the Ted Cruzes and the Rand Pauls to take over the party, or their disciples to take over the party,” King said on MSNBC. “Because this is not conservatism to me. Shutting down the government is not being conservative.”

(Also on POLITICO: Cruz celebrates Cantor loss)

King has leveled a long list of attacks on Cruz over the past year. He has likened the senator to a “kamikaze pilot” and suggested that many people “think he’s crazy,” said that Cruz was “hijacking the party” and that “no one has done more to strengthen Obamacare” than the Texas senator.

[SoConPubbie]

	"If we must have an enemy at the head of Government, let it be one whom we can oppose, and for whom we are not responsible, who will not involve our party in the disgrace of his foolish and bad measures." - Alexander Hamilton "We don't intend to turn the Republican Party over to the traitors in the battle just ended. We will have no more of those candidates who are pledged to the same goals as our opposition and who seek our support. Turning the Party over to the so-called moderates wouldn’t make any sense at all." -- President Ronald Reagan "A thing moderately good is not so good as it ought to be. Moderation in temper is always a virtue; but moderation in principle is always a vice." - Thomas Paine 1792 "It does not take a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority, keen on setting brushfires of freedom in the minds of men." - Samuel Adams "If ye love wealth better than liberty, the tranquility of servitude better than the animating contest of freedom, go home from us in peace. We ask not your counsels or your arms. Crouch down and lick the hands which feed you. May your chains set lightly upon you, and may posterity forget that you were our countrymen." - Samuel Adams

[SoConPubbie]

Ted Cruz Ping!

If you want on/off this ping list, please let me know.

Please beware, this is a high-volume ping list!

[TADSLOS]

Peter King is a statist toadie. GO TED!!

[Viennacon]

HAHAHA! Right on, Cruz!

[Gaffer]

I think it’s funny myself. Minimize your opposition. Frankly, from what I know about PK is that he’s a RINO in a high Democrat district. He’s a goofball of no import in my opinion. I’ve never once thought anything he’s had to say has any importance.

[skeeter]

We need fewer Kings and far more Cruzes.

Go Ted.

[Starstruck]

That’s got to hurt the ego.

[cotton1706]

Hahaha. This is gonna piss off King even more!

[Signalman]

Ted Cruz has something King will never have: Class.

[chris37]

What a coincidence, neither have I.

[afraidfortherepublic]

LOLOLOL! I wish that I’d never heard of Peter King too. He’s really an annoying fella’.

[Principled]

Cruz played it smart. He did not respond to King’s personal attacks.

Cruz just said there is too much bickering and person attacking in DC. ie Peter King was reinforced as _the_ problem in DC.

Well played Senator Cruz, well played.

[cuban leaf]

I’ve never heard of Peter King, until I read this headline just now.

[stanne]

Ooh, snap

Spoken like a Long Island high schooler, trendsetters of dissing King is familiar with

[petercooper]

Brilliant!

[cripplecreek]

LOL slap

[defconw]

Brilliant!

[RatRipper]

Peter King is a motor-mouth, self-important northeast ultra RINO . . . F’ him and the pony he rode in on.

[CatherineofAragon]

LOL! You have to love this guy. He knows where to stick the knife.

[matthew fuller]

Almost the equivalent of saying “Bless his little heart”.