Ted Cruz is the living embodiment of what a conservative Republican in Congress is supposed to be. While the Republican leadership was bowing to Obama, breaking campaign promises and attacking its own supporters, Ted Cruz was at the point of the spear, fighting for the American people. Cruz is intelligent, eloquent and he has proven over and over again that he’s willing to stand up, speak out and fight back. There are several good candidates running for President, but if you’re looking for a strong, smart outsider who’s proven to be consistently conservative and willing to fight, you can’t do any better than Ted Cruz. After you read these quotes, you’ll see why that’s true.

1) “I think it's an enormous blessing to be the child of an immigrant who fled oppression, because you realize how fragile liberty is and how easily it can be taken away.”

2) “You want to lose elections, stand for nothing. …And then of course, all of us remember President Dole and President McCain and President Romney. Now look, those are good men. They’re decent men, but when you don’t stand and draw a clear distinction; when you don’t stand for principle, Democrats celebrate.”

3) “I can tell you when you sit down and talk with a New York billionaire Republican donor — and I have talked with quite a few New York billionaire Republican donors, California Republican donors, their questions start out as follows. First of all, you’ve got to come out for gay marriage, you need to be pro-choice, and you need to support amnesty. That’s where the Republican donors are. You wonder why Republicans won’t fight on any of these issues? Because the people writing the checks agree with the Democrats.”

4) “We saw the ugly face of radical Islam in Garland, Texas. Thankfully, one police officer helped those terrorists meet their virgins.”

5) “Our national debt exceeds the size of our entire economy, threatening future generations. And, in the face of these grave economic challenges, Washington, DC, is agonizing over a 2.4 percent cut. We need to cut a lot more than 2.4 percent.”

6) “No man who doesn't begin every day on his knees is fit to stand in the Oval Office.”

7) “One more liberal justice and our right to keep and bear arms is taken away from us by an activist court. One more liberal justice and they begin sandblasting and bulldozing veterans’ memorials throughout this country. One more liberal justice and we lose our sovereignty to the United Nations and the World Court.”

8) ”I think President Obama is the most radical president this nation’s ever seen … And in particular, I think he is a true believer in government control of the economy and of our everyday lives. In my judgment, we are facing what I consider to be the epic battle of our generation, quite literally the battle over whether we remain a free market nation.”

9) “I will say standing here after 14 hours, standing on your feet, there's sometimes some pain, sometimes some fatigue that is involved, but you know what? There's far more pain involved in rolling over... far more pain in hiding in the shadows, far more pain in not standing for principle, not standing for the good, not standing for integrity.” – Cruz during his filibuster against Obamacare

10) “The greatest trick the Left has ever played is to convince conservatives that we cannot win.”

11) “If standing for liberty and standing for the Constitution make you a wacko bird, then you can count me a very proud wacko bird.” – Cruz responds to John McCain calling him a “wacko bird

12) “It is beyond dispute that when the 14th Amendment was adopted 146 years ago, as a necessary post-Civil War era reform, it was not imagined to also mandate same-sex marriage, but that is what the Supreme Court is implying today. The Court is making the preposterous assumption that the People of the United States somehow silently redefined marriage in 1868 when they ratified the 14th Amendment.”

13) “It’s interesting that in the Washington lexicon it’s somehow treated as being unpleasant or being a trouble maker to try to honor the commitments you have made to your constituents, and to urge your colleagues to do the same. What’s considered unpleasant in the Senate is not lack of civility – you can insult the heck out of each other although I don’t engage in that. What’s considered unpardonable is actually speaking the truth and doing what you said you would do and even worse making clear, shining the light on the fact that there are a whole lot of other people willing to do exactly the opposite of what they said they would do. That’s treated as the unpardonable sin, how dare you be so selfish – and it’s funny they use the term selfish – as to actually honor the commitments to your constituents. That’s not playing the rules of the game. Well, you know what the rules of the game have resulted in bankrupting our kids and grandkids and seeing our constitutional liberties eroded. Enough is enough.”

14) “Regardless, let me suggest a simple rule. Don’t give weapons to people who hate us. Don’t give weapons to people who want to kill us.”

15) “If you are a Conservative, you shouldn’t have to tell anybody. If you really are a Conservative, you will have been walking the walk, you will bear the stripes, and your actions will speak louder than words.”

16) “One of biggest lies in politics is the lie that Republicans are the party of big business. Big business does great with big government. Big business is very happy to climb in bed with big government. Republicans are and should be the party of small business and of entrepreneurs.”

17) “They said, ‘Listen, before you did this, the politics of it were great: The Dems were the bad guys, the Republicans were the good guys. Now we all look like a bunch of squishes. Well, there is an alternative: You can just not be a bunch of squishes.” — Cruz on a private meeting with other Republican senators

18) “I am saddened to see that some here, not everyone, but some here, are so consumed with hate… If you will not stand with Israel and the Jews, then I will not stand with you.” – Cruz before walking off the stage after being booed by a Middle Eastern group for supporting Israel

19) "Fifty-five years ago, when my dad was a penniless teenager, thank God some well-meaning bureaucrat didn’t put his arm around him and say ‘let me take care of you.’"

20) “Part of what’s so problematic with Washington is how many Republicans want a show vote to pretend to their constituents they’re fighting for what they say they’re fighting for, rather than actually fighting for it and actually winning. In both parties, you’ve got entrenched politicians who have barely veiled contempt for the American people. They think their voters are gullible rubes – and you give them a little ‘show vote,’ you tell them, ‘Hey, I’m totally with you,’ then they go to Washington and they don’t actually do what they say.”