Sen. Ted Cruz at Road to Majority Conference

nndb thank you so much kellyanne thank you everyone god bless the faith and freedom coalition and

god bless concerned women of America nnj I'm thrilled to be back with so many friends today you

know today the body of Christ is in mourning I want to begin by just reflecting on the horrific tragedy of last night at

the Emanuel and the church and a second arranged person came and prayed with a historically black congregation for an hour and

then murdered nine innocents Christians across our nation across the world believers across the world our

those who were murdered last night it's a new morning a new morning and we're gathered here today focused on our country focused

of the around three and what an extraordinary leader Ralph reed he is tenacious I'm pretty sure he never sleeps and

I have photographic proof that even if he does sleep when he sleeps he smiled he brings a spirit of joy and

other determination to the task at hand of motivating people of faith to stand up and take on I

also want to say a word about my friend penny Nance penny is extraordinary concerned women of America are

an army of women on the ground in all fifty states standing up for our nation I'll

tell ya I am profoundly optimistic that we're going to turn our nation around in the reason I'm optimistic is because of the leaders who are gathered here today the reason I'm optimistic is because each

our nation what I want to do this afternoon there many many issues we could talk about we could talk about jobs in the economy we

could talk about taxes and regulatory reform but I want to talk about an issue that I think will be front and center in

twenty sixteen and that is religious liberty I believe twenty sixteen will be the

religious liberty election religious liberty has never been more threatened in America then right now today and

let's talk about religious liberty both at home and abroad at home like many of the men and women in this room I've spent decades fighting

to defend religious liberty what I was the Solicitor General of Texas I was proud to defend the ten commandments monument on the state capitol grounds we

went to the U. S. Supreme Court and we won five for I was proud to defend the pledge of allegiance the words one nation under god we

representing over three million veterans pro bono for free defending

the Mohave desert veterans memorial a lone white Latin cross erected over seventy years ago to honor

the men and women who gave their lives in World War one the ACLU sued seeking to tear down that monument and they won in the District Court they

want in the court of appeals the court of appeals literally ordered that a plywood box be

built around the monument to hide it because they said you could not gaze upon the image of a cross on federal lands well

I'll tell you this there right in one thing cross nnj and I was proud to represent three million veterans before the U. S. Supreme Court defending that monument and we won five