Story highlights Ted Cruz told a New Hampshire audience Sunday that requiring women to sign up for the draft is "nuts"

It's a break from several Republican presidential rivals

Peterborough, New Hampshire (CNN) Ted Cruz told a New Hampshire audience Sunday that requiring women to sign up for the draft is "nuts," breaking with the views of several Republican presidential rivals.

Two days before the New Hampshire primary Cruz veered off his stump speech to blast his GOP competitors on the issue, which came up at the ABC debate Saturday. Marco Rubio, Jeb Bush and Chris Christie all said or suggested they'd support women being required to enroll in Selective Service and be eligible for the draft, since female service members can now serve in combat roles. Cruz was not asked.

"It was striking that three different people on that stage came out in support of drafting women into combat in the military," Cruz said. "I have to admit, as I was sitting there listening to that conversation, my reaction was: Are you guys nuts?"

"We have had enough with political correctness -- especially in the military," Cruz said to loud applause in the town building. "Political correctness is dangerous, and the idea that we would draft our daughters, to forcibly bring them into the military and put them in close contact -- I think is wrong, it is immoral, and if I am president, we ain't doing it."

Cruz pointed to his daughters to complete the contrast with those rivals.

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