Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) on Saturday said Democrats had gone to extremes in their persecution of Christians.
“Today’s Democratic Party has decided there is no room for Christians in today’s Democratic Party,” he said at the Iowa Faith and Freedom Coalition summit in Waukee, Iowa.
“There is a liberal fascism that is going after Christian believers,” the 2016 GOP presidential candidate continued.
“It is heartbreaking,” Cruz argued. “But it is so extreme, it is waking people up.”
{mosads}Cruz said same-sex marriage had produced rabid zealotry in Democratic ranks. This ideology, he argued, was excluding people of faith.
“Today’s Democratic Party has become so radicalized for legalizing gay marriage in all 50 states that there is no longer any room for religious liberty,” he said.
The Texas lawmaker said this stance was against America’s traditional values. Religious liberty, Cruz claimed, was one of the nation’s founding principles.
“We were founded by men and women fleeing religious persecution,” Cruz declared.
“We need leaders who will stand unapologetically in defense of the Judeo-Christian values upon which America was built,” he concluded.
Cruz, a long-time opponent of same-sex marriage, seemingly softened his tone on gay rights earlier this week.
The White House hopeful reportedly said Monday evening he would still accept one of his daughters if they became a lesbian.
The Texas lawmaker was the first official entrant into the 2016 election cycle.
He so far will face Sens. Rand Paul (Ky.) and Marco Rubio (Fla.) for their party’s nomination.