Rand Paul and Ted Cruz have framed themselves as "populists" in the Republican sense of the word, which is to give lip service to the idea of fighting for the working class, at least. But today both of them showed themselves to be the servants of their oligarchs when they signed Grover Norquist's tax pledge.
Both Sens. Rand Paul and Ted Cruz have been in the presidential race for less than a month and both announced Friday that they signed a storied pledge vowing not to raise taxes. Their position contrasts with that of Jeb Bush who has said he wouldn't sign it.
The pledge, which dates back to 1986 and founded by anti-tax advocate Grover Norquist, has long been a fixture in Republican political campaigns but has also caused some candidates problems once in office.
"My record supporting tax cuts is clear, and I am pleased to be able to sign the Taxpayer Protection Pledge again as a candidate for president so taxpayers can be assured that I will do what I say I will do," Cruz wrote in a statement.
Norquist praised both Paul and Cruz as being champions for taxpayers.
The only other Republican candidate in the race, Florida Sen. Marco Rubio, has not yet signed the pledge. He did sign it when he was running for the senate in 2009.
