Ted Cruz Quotes

My parents were European immigrants. They came to the States with $1,500, two suitcases, and me, and they managed to build a business, a family, and a future for their family. They didn't have any of the resources of people who have lived here for two or three generations.

America has always fascinated me; it's a country where you can make it from one side to the other with no money, by hook or by crook.

Americans are hard working, innovative, proud people who want bad government policies and high taxes to get out of the way so they can take care of their families and pursue their dreams.

That's what we do in this country. That's the American Dream. That's freedom, and I'll take it any day over the supervision and sanctimony of the central planners.

Unfortunately, the liberal philosophy has created millions of people that way who believe everything they are or ever hope to be depends upon the federal government rather than the opportunities that this great country grants them.

It's opportunity. It's opportunity, not a check from government - it's opportunity that has always driven America and defined us as Americans.

In American history, it's about hard work and self-reliance. It's not about collecting giveaways or being on unemployment forever. That the economy moves ahead for people who are going to work to realize the American dream, own a home, send your kids to college. I think it's the founding cornerstone of America.

Freedom. Freedom of religion. Freedom to speak their mind. Freedom to build a life. And yes, freedom to build a business. With their own hands. This is the essence of the American experience.

We should reject big government and look inside ourselves for all the things that built this country into what it was.

My parents leaving a third world country to a first world country and building from nothing - that's really inspiring to me and it's influenced me in a positive way.

There was a generation of people who moved here to make something of themselves. They had to really struggle and created really something on their own apart from a lot of attention. It was a really exciting time here.

I came to the United States in the early '80s and was welcomed with open arms and given the opportunity to pursue my dreams. God has been very kind to us. My family and I are fortunate enough to be successful and we feel a tremendous responsibility and obligation to give back to our great country.

I believe in singing for my supper. I'll never accept a grant because what I do should be able to be founded purely on free enterprise.

My family didn't have money, and I think it made me fearless. I'm willing to try everything and not be afraid because what's the worst that can be happen? It might not work out, but I can't be worse off than when I was a kid.

I'll dispose of my teeth as I see fit, and after they've gone, I'll get along. I started off living on gruel, and by God, I can always go back to it again.

The American Dream is not being dependent on the federal government for your health care, for your automobile, for your college education, for your student loan on and on and on.

Because I was poor I had one special advantage. When you are poor, and basic survival is your concern, you have no alternative but to be an entrepreneur. You must take action to survive just as you must take action to seize an opportunity.

It is generally the most energetic and resourceful people who flee old lives to build new worlds, leaving their less enterprising fellow-countrymen behind them.

It was a big deal to leave home and my culture and my language. But I believed that in America, I could truly reap what I sowed and that the measure of a man was his ability and determination to succeed. This was the land of boundless opportunity.

My parents both came to the United States from the Dominican Republic, and they were deeply grateful for the opportunities this country provided. They raised my siblings and me to want to make a difference and give back. They taught us to work hard and aim high, but to also make sure the ladder was down to help others climb up.

When America's early pioneers first turned their eyes toward the West, they did not demand that somebody take care of them if they got ill or got old. They did not demand maximum pay for minimum work, and even pay for no work at all.

Growing up, I didn't have a lot and always wanted things. But I was too prideful to ask for anything; I always worked for it.

We need to show the fact that when you start thinking about freedom and liberty, personal responsibility, and opportunity to achieve the American Dream, the Republican party is the best party to do that.

Sometimes well-intentioned programs can lead to dependency and cause us to forget we have what it takes to attain the American dream.

America provided things that form the foundation of who we used to be: the prospect and potential of hope, mercy, and freedom for strangers who came carrying not much more than a determination to survive in a big country with a bigger heart.