Cruz ready to take on the ‘cartel’

WEST DES MOINES - Ted Cruz says he's ready to take on federal lawmakers and lobbyists, a group he likes to call 'the Washington cartel.”

The U.S. senator from Texas and conservative firebrand, who is running for the Republican presidential nomination, appeared Monday at a Barnes & Noble here to sign copies of his book, 'A Time for Truth.”

Before signing books for more than 60 people, Cruz chatted with reporters, saying that as president he would attempt to break the bond between 'career politicians” and special-interest lobbyists.

Cruz said examples of that fight would include ending subsidies such as financial benefits for sugar growers and eliminating the sales tax on Internet purchases, which Cruz said benefit the biggest companies.

'Here's how the Washington cartel works: When you have a handful of giant players making millions upon millions of dollars, they write checks to all the politicians that continue the special benefits,” Cruz said. ''Let me tell you who doesn't have the lobbyist in Washington: the single mom who's going to the grocery store ... who's seen her wages stagnate and who sees the price of food going up each and every week,” he said.

Cruz is in a large field of Republican candidates, which is expected to grow to 16 in the coming weeks.

Cruz said he thinks Republican primary voters are looking for someone who has stood up to leadership in Washington, even within the Republican Party.

In 2013, Cruz tried to rally Republicans to support defunding the new federal health care law - championed by Democrats - at the expense of passing a federal budget, a move that led to a two-week partial federal government shutdown.

'Don't just tell me about standing up to Democrats and (President) Barack Obama. ... It's easy for a Republican to claim he or she has stood up to Democrats and Barack Obama. Show me,” where you've stood up to the Washington cartel and the leadership in the Republican Party,”Cruz said.

'There are, I think, 146 candidates running for president on the Republican side,” Cruz joked. 'You know, not a lot of them can point to instances where they stood up to leadership in the Republican Party.”

In a statement, the Iowa Democratic Party called Cruz a 'divisive, obstructionist politician.”

'He may be long-winded on tea party rhetoric, but Cruz offers zero solutions that are good for Iowa's working families,” Democratic state party spokesman Sam Lau said.