Republican New York Rep. Peter King is upset with Texas Senator Ted Cruz and he wants him to know it. Appearing on Fox News Tuesday, the congressman called the Cruz-backed plan to defund Obamacare in the continuing resolution a "disaster" and "terrible policy."
"That's Ted Cruz's fault. Ted Cruz led us down this path. This was a disaster from the start," King said. "I could have predicted this and this is what the leadership predicted three weeks ago when they said they would never pursue defunding because it was going to work against us and we'd be blamed. But Ted Cruz insisted that his people follow him, and we did it, and that's why we're in this position. It's his fault, and he wants us to get him out of it. Listen, I'm saying the president should negotiate, but I'm saying that this was caused by Ted Cruz and his acolytes in the House of Representatives. They led us down this dead-end street."
King continued battering Cruz, citing other prominent Republicans who had attacked Cruz's strategy in the past.
"Wall Street Journal, Karl Rove, Tom Coburn, all solid conservatives said this was a terrible policy to begin with," King said. "We had a Republican senator say it was the dopiest idea they'd ever heard. Ted Cruz is to blame, and those in the House who stand with him have brought about this train wreck. It's up to us to try to get it out, and it's up to the president to step in and stop standing on the sidelines."
King's attempt to lead a moderate Republican rebellion against defunding Obamacare in the House failed miserably last night.