Sen. Ted Cruz Rafael (Ted) Edward CruzCrenshaw looms large as Democrats look to flip Texas House seat SCOTUS confirmation in the last month of a close election? Ugly The Hill's Morning Report - Sponsored by Facebook - Trump previews SCOTUS nominee as 'totally brilliant' MORE (R-Texas) said Thursday that he hopes to "run again" for president after his failed 2016 White House bid.

“Look, I hope to run again,” Cruz told the Christian Science Monitor. “We came very, very close in 2016. And it’s the most fun I’ve ever had in my life."

“The great thing is, every issue I was fighting for in the presidential campaign is front and center in the Senate,” he added.

His comments came during a discussion on the fiscal deficit.

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“It takes presidential leadership, and it won’t come from Congress,” Cruz said. “I will say, though, the most powerful tool for addressing the deficit and the debt is not actually spending cuts. The most powerful tool is economic growth, which is why that’s my No. 1 priority.”

Cruz ran for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016 but was defeated by President Trump Donald John TrumpFederal prosecutor speaks out, says Barr 'has brought shame' on Justice Dept. Former Pence aide: White House staffers discussed Trump refusing to leave office Progressive group buys domain name of Trump's No. 1 Supreme Court pick MORE. He was one of the last candidates to exit the race.

In that election he had proposed flat taxes of 10 percent for families and individuals and 16 percent for companies. He told the Monitor that these cuts, combined with Trump's 2017 tax cuts, would be “profoundly pro-growth in terms of driving jobs."