Ted Cruz Responds to John Kasich Telling Christians to 'Get Over' Asking for Religious Freedom
Republican presidential hopeful U.S. Senator Ted Cruz recently denounced the comments of Ohio Governor John Kasich made regarding the need for religious liberty protection laws.
In an interview with the Conservative Review before the New York Primary, Sen. Cruz took issue with his Republican opponent's claim that religious liberty laws were unnecessary.
"I don't think the American people are willing to get over our basic liberties. We fought a bloody revolution to protect our religious liberty," said Cruz.
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"This nation was founded by men and women fleeing religious oppression, and seeking a land where every one of us could seek out and worship God almighty with all of our hearts, minds and souls, free of the government getting in the way."
Cruz's comments were in response to recent statements Gov. Kasich made regarding attempts by some states to pass laws protecting individuals and businesses opposed to gay marriage on religious grounds.
"If you don't like what somebody's doing, pray for them, and if you feel as though somebody is doing something wrong against you, can you just for a second get over it? You know?" stated Kasich via CNN.
"There is a legitimate concern for people being able to have their deeply held religious beliefs, religious liberty … But there's also people who we shouldn't be discriminating against. We need to have a balance."
Regarding these comments, Cruz stated "I suppose King George could have given the same message, 'get over it, while I strip your freedom.'"
Since the U.S. Supreme Court's 5-4 decision striking down laws banning gay marriage, many have expressed concern about the impact the ruling has made on religious liberty.
Last year Republican Congressman Raúl Labrador of Idaho introduced a bill called the First Amendment Defense Act that would prevent the federal government from punishing gay marriage opponents.
Conservative groups including the American Principles Project and the Family Research Council created a pledge for the presidential candidates saying they will sign FADA into law within their first 100 days as president.
While Cruz was among the six Republican candidates who agreed to the pledge, Kasich was one of the four who did not even express support for the pledge.
Cruz and Kasich's comments come on the eve of the New York primary, where Republican frontrunner Donald Trump won the state with 60.5 percent of the vote.
Kasich came in second with 25.1 percent and Cruz came in third with 14.5 percent. On the Democratic side, Hillary Clinton defeated Senator Bernie Sanders with 57.9 percent of the vote.
