How can voting against it, being the most vocal advocate to killing it, and offering not 1, not 2, but THREE poison pill amendments be viewed as “not opposing the underlying mass legalization”?
Because he would have voted for it had it had the amendments he wanted. If those amendments succeeded, there would be no deportation of the 11-40 million illegals in this country. They would be "out of the shadows," as Cruz himself stated.
but THREE poison pill amendments
But notice there was no amendment to remove the underlying granting of legal status.
This is what he still supports. He said so himself. To this day, he still redefines the word "amnesty" in such a way that supporting HIS version of the bill would not be "amnesty." To this day Cruz STILL avoids or strutters and hesitates his way when people ask him if he supports deportation.
When Cruz stated he agrees with Trump on immigration, he lied.