Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), who calls himself a “proud wacko bird,” told CBS News that President Barack Obama was plotting to make immigration reform fail so that Democrats could campaign on it in 2014 and 2016.

In an interview that aired on Wednesday, Cruz explained to CBS reporter Jan Crawford that Obama was playing a political game on Republicans by pushing a path to citizenship as a part of comprehensive immigration reform.

ADVERTISEMENT

“President Obama does not want an immigration bill to pass,” he stated confidently. “I think the president wants to campaign on immigration reform in 2014 and 2016. And I think the reason the White House is insisting on a path to citizenship for those who are here illegally is because the White House knows that insisting on that is very likely to scuttle the bill.”

Crawford pressed Cruz one what he would do with the estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants who were already living in the United States.

“I think there could probably could be a compromise on that if a path to citizenship was taken off the table,” he insisted.

Earlier this year, fellow Republican Sen. John McCain (R-AZ), one of eight senators helping to craft the immigration reform proposal, called Cruz a “wacko bird” for filibustering the nomination of CIA Director John Brennan over the administration’s use of drones.

“If standing for liberty and standing for the Constitution makes you a wacko bird then I am a very, very proud wacko bird,” Cruz quipped to Crawford.

ADVERTISEMENT

Watch the video below from CBS News, broadcast April 24, 2013.