According to a former speechwriter for Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX), her former boss's "abject humiliation" at the hands of Fox News personality Tucker Carlson last week over comments the senator made about January 6th rioters should be cause for concern for anyone watching the Republican Party to see where it's going.
While reviews of Cruz's groveling before Carlson became fodder for critics from both sides of the aisle, Amanda Carpenter took a more dour look. Writing in the The Bulwark on Monday, she said it demonstrated how far the GOP has fallen since Donald Trump was elected.
Beginning, "Every last member of the punditocracy has taken a turn dunking on the Texas senator whom everyone loves to hate. Hope they enjoyed it. Because once you really understand what Cruz is apologizing for, it’s not all that funny," the conservative commentator added, "The worst part of that interview wasn’t Cruz’s abject humiliation, but his radicalization. And yes, that’s saying something considering that Cruz was one of the leaders of the charge to object to the Electoral College count on January 6, 2021."
Carpenter wrote that Cruz could have easily defended his comments but instead waved the white flag and let Carlson degrade him.
READ MORE: National Review writer pummels 'coward' Ted Cruz for 'debasing' himself in front of Tucker Carlson
"One has to ask why the Harvard- and Yale-educated Supreme Court lawyer didn’t stand his ground and defend himself. Rather, Cruz shifted into bargaining mode," she wrote before elaborating, "I understand the urge to dunk on Cruz, what happened on Carlson’s show is more than just an example of Cruz’s weaselly pleading being worthy of a laugh. It’s ultimately not funny at all."
According to Carpenter, the Cruz on display on Fox News last week is not the man she once worked for.
"Cruz once strove to convey that he cared about justice and truth. He used to believe that violence was violence, and that the rule of law (and the rules of language) should be equally applied," she recalled. "That’s no longer the case. What he did on Jan. 6th himself last year and what he said on Carlson’s show last week goes far beyond pandering."
"Cruz’s humiliation is hardly the point. His radicalization is far more frightening," she confessed.
You can read her whole piece here.
