Ted Cruz: Workers Paying for Degrees in “Queer Pet Literature”
Texas senator echoes Congresswoman Lauren Boebert's attack on college debtors as lazy, shiftless, and unqualified for jobs in the real world.
While attempting to criticize yet another of President Joe Biden’s policies, Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz once again lampooned a caricature of those on the political Left who support the idea, with just a hint of homophobia added in to appeal to his socially conservative base and grab headlines.
In a now-viral clip that made the rounds on Twitter, Cruz mocked the idea of giving relief to those who chose to pursue higher education. He argued that working Americans, including many who never attended college, will have to bear the cost of bailing out those who haven’t managed to pay off their own student loans.
Under the plan, the Biden administration is expected to cancel up to $20,000 in student debt for Pell Grant recipients, and up to $10,000 for other individuals, who make less than $125,000 per year or $250,000 per year for married couples.
The administration claims this will help low- and middle-income Americans who are saddled with student debt, which has been exacerbated by the rising cost of education, reports Newsweek.
Cruz initially criticized Biden’s plan on his Verdict with Ted Cruz podcast, stating, “If you are that slacker barista who wasted seven years in college studying completely useless things, now has loans and can’t get a job, Joe Biden just gave you 20 grand.”
He also implied that the policy was an effort by Biden to boost Democrats’ chances in the upcoming midterm elections by ginning up youth turnout. He speculated that if people with college debt could “get off the bong for a minute and head down to the voting station, or just send in your mail-in ballot that the Democrats have helpfully sent you, it could drive up turnout.”
In a subsequent episode of his Verdict podcast, released this past Sunday, Cruz sought to clarify his remarks.
“Are there people who wasted years studying utterly useless things, who couldn’t get a job afterwards and who are now working as a barista and are slackers? Yes,” Cruz said to host Michael J. Knowles. “Is every barista a slacker? Of course not. They are wonderful and great people, many of whom, by the way, don’t have student loans.
“They are getting screwed by the Democrats, because they are saying the guy that studied queer pet literature and has $100,000 in debt, because oddly enough, to reference another podcast, you know, Mickey and Pluto going at it, other than getting a job at Disney, there’s not a lot of job market for queer pet literature.”
The Mickey and Pluto comment refers to another Cruz rant on a separate episode of Verdict, in which the senator claimed that by coming out against Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” bill — a move the company said was done to support its LGBTQ employees — the Walt Disney Corporation was going to begin showing inappropriate content on shows and cartoons designated for children.
Cruz isn’t the only Republican who seems obsessed with LGBTQ issues when lampooning the political Left or trying to criticize the Biden administration.
Last month, U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert (R-Colo.) made a similar criticism of Biden’s announced debt relief plans, casting college debtors as people with degrees in niche, boutique majors that have no practical world applications, and who deserve to be mocked for their embrace of “woke” ideology.
Appearing on Fox News’ Hannity, Boebert, who received her GED certificate in 2020 and never attended college, made the remarks while blasting Biden for declaring that supporters of the “Make America Great Again” agenda espoused by former President Trump are a threat to the country.
“How the heck could Joe Biden call America First conservatives a threat to democracy with a straight face and a dry diaper?” Boebert said. “He’s the one who has allowed millions to invade our southern border. He’s the one who is robbing hardworking Americans to pay for Karen’s daughter’s degree in lesbian dance theory.”
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