The most hated man in the Senate

Erica Grieder, Foreign Policy, April 2013 -   In the first few months of his first term in the United States Senate, Ted Cruz has been, for all practical purposes, the human equivalent of one of those flower-squirters that clowns wear on their lapels. His initiatives can often seem like non-sequiturs — he has proposed defunding the United Nations over forced abortions in China. And his statements can seem almost self defeating, such as when he described decorated war veterans Chuck Hagel and John Kerry as "less than ardent fans of the U.S. military."

Not surprisingly, the freshman from Texas has irritated Democrats. Sen. Dianne Feinstein described him as "arrogant" and "patronizing" after the new arrival offered the 20-year Senate veteran a lesson on the constitution during a debate over assault weapons. He’s also been a headache for GOP leaders, expressing reluctance to back fellow Texas Republican John Cornyn for minority whip on the grounds that he had to make sure the candidate he supported would "stand and fight for conservative principles." (National Journal ranked Cornyn as the second-most conservative member in the pre-Cruz Senate last year.)....