0 were taken out of context. i don't know how you take those remarks out of context. we put up the whole videos. >> i think context is the right question to use here. wayne slater, this question. if this guy gets further in terms of power on the right wing, senator cruz, if he gets higher -- he's pretty high right now. up along with rand paul. people will say how come we didn't know this about his father. i think people want to know about it. they'll say it's not fair to talk about a family member. i think he's more than just a family member based on what i'm seeing here. he's out in the political arena himself. he wasn't dragged into the political arena. he wasn't simply an embarrassing relative like ronald nixon or billy carter. he went into the political arena. he chose to have us listen to him and now we are. your thoughts, wayne. who is he and what role does he play? >> david's got it exactly right. i've spent time with rafael cruz on the road with ted cruz. he is very, very, very close to his son in every way that you rafael cruz has said these kinds of things in tea party groups here. i've heard him in iowa and elsewhere. and let me tell you, you go away and talk to some of these pastors, religious pastors and populist tea party folks on the right and they'll say what's to disagree with? >> this is exactly what boehner does in the house. it's exactly what all people in the right now do. they have this rightist, far right of right ka tillon out there, this auxiliary out there. they use to it get right, right, right. if they get into power that will be part of their coalition. they do it by saying i'm not that far right, but that guy's an ally. boehner says it. they won't disown the craziest of them because the craziest of them is their engine. >> yeah. it's the tiger they want to ride into power. it's the tiger that john boehner rode into power as speaker. it's the tiger i think ted cruz wants to ride into power at least in the -- >> those people clicking their heels for ted cruz the jr. are thinking many of them like the father. but then they know you can't say that in public. like kenya. >> and wayne talked about rafael cruz's standing with the tea party which is very strong. he's also been featured by their heritage action group and freedom works. he's becoming a right wing star of his own. but also his sway is increasingly very strong within the evangelical community. christian reconstructionists. the dominionists. we probably don't have time to go into the theology here. but it's interesting. >> how do these -- >> but these people are -- we can get into that. >> what does it mean dominionist? >> a dominionist basically has a rigd and fundamental view of the world that people can be kings and priests. a king works in the secular world, a priest works in the spiritual world. and they take dominion over every aspect of society. economics, politics, so on. ted cruz himself has been anointed by dominionist pastors. >> so this is a christian version of sheree ya? >> it's basically saying these are the people who are going to bring into power the kingdom of christ. they basically talk about a theocracy without calling it such. >> wayne, watch this. in another tea party campaign this spring, rafael cruz called the country a christian nation. >> i submit to you that these two documents were signed on the knees of the framers. these two documents are devine revelation from god. and yet our precedent has the call to tell us that this is not a christian nation. this was formed, the united states of america was formed to honor the word of god. >> and he had this to say about the president of the united states. >> if you have heard him recite the pledge, he skips "under god." never says those two words. "under god." >> so the president according to cruz sr. never says the word "under god" in reciting the pledge of allegiance. in the fact-based world where there is things like videotape, we know it's not true. now, listen here to a 180 difference between nonsense and reality. >> we pledge allegiance to the flag of the united states of america. and to the republic for which it stands. one nation. under god indivisible with liberty and justice for all. >> and to the republic for which it stands one nation under god -- >> one nation under god indivisible with liberty and justice for all. >> we have been and always will be one nation under god indivisible with liberty and justice for all. >> so that recalls groucho marx. you going to believe me or your lying eyes? i believe my lying eyes. i don't know what the -- why does the other guy say stuff that's so demonstratively untrue? are there people that don't want to hear the truth and just want to hear the gospel of the cruz family? why do they want to be lied to? this is one of the rare cases i'll use the word "lie." it's not about opinion on analysis or context. it's not true. he says "under god." >> yeah. well, as the romans said to christ, what is truth. truth is in this case a much larger thing. rafael cruz despite the obvious errors here, the obvious lie or fact that it's not true that obama doesn't use the term "under god," rafael cruz and ted cruz is speaking to a larger area, a larger message, a larger narrative. it is speaking to grievance and anxiety. he's speaking to people who think not only have they lost but that the country is not holding it center. but who feel that they've been betrayed. betrayed by their government, betrayed by a lot of other people. so when he speaks in these ways, these are ways that resonate. chris, if i went today and i know david has done this. back to iowa, northern florida, and parts of south carolina and asked christians even if they just saw that clip whether obama has never used the words "under god" when he recites the pledge, they will say absolutely. they will believe it because it's part of a larger sense, a fear to which the person who presents absolutes. and that's ted cruz. the person who brings this in a theological and frankly tea party populist sense, and that's rafael cruz, is telling the truth. >> you know what? i just want to say that this reminds me of what we always believed about the marxists. the real communist who is did it for a living. they would say anything that they believe would advance their cause. truth to them was whatever advances the cause. it sounds so much like the parallel to that. >> you know, it's interesting, too, and wayne got at this. that rafael cruz really represents the full synthesis of the religious right and the tea party right which we talked about the last few years. there's a tremendous overlap there. and they both are factions based on grievance, feeling they're not in the mainstream. and these people are -- you know, gives these speeches, goes to these megachurches and talks about this stuff. they say, yes, your son will deliver us. they mean it politically and spiritually. >> any connection between benjamin franklin, george washington, john adams, james madison and this crowd is purely coincidental. thank you david corn and wayne slater. coming up, if you listen to republicans you'll surely hear horror stories about people losing insurance because of the president's health care plan. the only problem with most of those stories is they aren't true. tonight a reality check on all the willful misinformation out there. plus rand paul digs himself even deeper. rachel maddow caught him plajerizing wikipedia and he goes after her. here's advice. shine a little light on your real problem and then move on. also, want to know how angry voters are about the shutdown? angry enough that the democrat who is weren't going to challenge house republicans are now jumping into the races. and there are a few more things more horrifying than washington dysfunction. it should be no surprise that halloween masks are a hot theme tonight. this is "hardball," the place for politics. charitable giving. really. i get bonuses even working part-time. where i work, over 400 people are promoted every day. healthcare starting under $40 a month. i got education benefits. i work at walmart. i'm a pharmacist. sales associate. i manage produce. i work in logistics. there's more to walmart than you think. vo: opportunity. that's the real walmart. help the gulf when we made recover and learn the gulf, bp from what happened so we could be a better, safer energy company. i can tell you - safety is at the heart of everything we do. we've added cutting-edge technology, like a new deepwater well cap and a state-of-the-art monitoring center, where experts watch over all drilling activity twenty-four-seven. and we're sharing what we've learned, so we can all produce energy more safely. our commitment has never been stronger. more republican obstructionism on display today. senate republicans successfully blocked two obama administration appointees. u.s. congressman mel watt of north carolina was blocked from becoming the next head of the federal housing finance agency. watt is the first sitting member of congress whose nomination has been defeated by a phil buster since, get this, 1843. and the other appointee to be blocked by patricia millit to the court of appeals. 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