Republican presidential candidate Ted Cruz told reporters in Iowa Saturday that the shooting in San Bernardino, Calif. has pushed the 2016 presidential race into a more serious phase and vowed to "utterly destroy" the Islamic State group, according to The Washington Post.
"If I am elected president, we will utterly destroy ISIS," the Texas senator told reporters in Des Moines. "We won't weaken them. We won't degrade them. We will utterly destroy them. We will carpet bomb them into oblivion. We will arm the Kurds. We will do everything necessary so that every militant on the face of the earth will know if you go and join ISIS, if you wage jihad and declare war on America, you are signing your death warrant."
The FBI said Friday that it was investigating Wednesday's San Bernardino shooting, which left 14 dead and 21 injured, as an act of terrorism. One of the shooters, Tashfeen Malik, allegedly made a public declaration of loyalty to the Islamic State group's leader while the attack was underway. The Islamic State group praised the attack on Saturday and called Malik and her accomplice-husband, Syed Rizwan Farook, "supporters" of the terror group. "We pray to God to accept them as martyrs," the Islamic State group said during a radio broadcast on al-Bayan Radio, reported CNN.
Cruz told reporters in Iowa Saturday that in the wake of the recent attacks in Paris and San Bernardino, voters should more carefully evaluate their support for candidates like Donald Trump and Ben Carson, two political outsiders who have been criticized for a lack of foreign policy expertise.
"They're looking at every candidate for president and assessing who's prepared to be commander in chief, who has the experience, who has the clarity of vision, who has the strength and resolve to keep this country safe," Cruz said, according to the Post.
He also repeatedly criticized the weak foreign policy of Democratic presidential front-runner Hillary Clinton and President Obama.
"When President Obama stands up and says the Islamic State is not Islamic, that's just nutty," Cruz said. "That's not a reasonable foreign policy discussion. That's not an interesting view on national security. That is bizarre political correct blindness."
Cruz will debut a new TV ad in Iowa during the Big 10 Conference's football championship game between Michigan State and Iowa Saturday night, a game that will be one of the most heavily watched live events in the Hawkeye state ahead of the Feb. 1 caucuses, according to The New York Times. The ad shows Cruz speaking directly to the camera and vowing to "rebuild our military" and "kill the terrorists."
"If I'm elected to serve as Commander-in-Chief, we won't cower in the face of evil. America will lead," Cruz says. "We'll rebuild our military. We'll kill the terrorists. And every Islamic extremist will know, if you wage jihad against us, you're signing your death warrant."
The latest national CNN/ORC poll released Friday showed Cruz moving into second place behind Republican front-runner Donald Trump.
