Ted Cruz, the man trailing Donald Trump for the Republican presidential nomination, moved quickly to make political hay from the 34 dead after the Brussels attacks on Tuesday -- by blaming Europeans for allowing 'toxic' migrants To enter Europe and blow themselves up.
After demanding President Obama immediately return from Cuba to deal with a crisis 3,000 miles away and in another country, Cruz criticised Europeans for allowing non-Europeans to enter Europe.
Venting on Facebook, Cruz wrote:
For years, the west has tried to deny this enemy exists out of a combination of political correctness and fear. We can no longer afford either.
Our European allies are now seeing what comes of a toxic mix of migrants who have been infiltrated by terrorists and isolated, radical Muslim neighborhoods.
We will do what we can to help them fight this scourge, and redouble our efforts to make sure it does not happen here.
We need to immediately halt the flow of refugees from countries with a significant al Qaida or ISIS presence.
Cruz also offered a suggestion for making the US safe from similar attacks – have police target Muslim neighbourhoods with extra surveillance. The fact this is likely unconstitutional was breezed over by Cruz, who is a constitutional lawyer.
“We need to empower law enforcement to patrol and secure Muslim neighbourhoods before they become radicalised,” he wrote.
He added, “The days of the United States voluntarily surrendering to the enemy to show how progressive and enlightened we can be are at an end. Our country is at stake.
Earlier on Tuesday, Donald Trump used the attacks to bolster his own political agenda by calling for the US to close its borders and monitor all Muslims in the US.