Ted Cruz wants Texas to secede if 'things become hopeless' in the US

Sen. Ted Cruz Rafael (Ted) Edward CruzOvernight Health Care — Presented by Rare Access Action Project — White House unshaken by mandate ruling Ted Cruz wants Texas to secede if 'things become hopeless' in the US Republican says GOP should block government funding over vaccine mandates MORE (R-Texas) said that Texas should secede if Democrats "fundamentally" destroy the U.S. but added that "he is not ready to give up on America yet."

"If the Democrats end the filibuster, if they fundamentally destroy the country, if they pack the Supreme Court, if they make D.C. a state, if they federalize elections, if they massively expand voter fraud, there may come a point where it's hopeless," Cruz said while speaking at an event at Texas A&M last month.

The Republican senator was responding to a question posed by a student in the crowd who asked him how he felt about the Texas secessionist movement.

"I think Texas has a responsibility to the country, and I'm not ready to give up on America. I love this country," he said.

He also added that Texas has an added responsibility to the U.S. as it is currently "an amazing force keeping America from going off the cliff" and "keeping America grounded in the values that built this country."

However, he emphasized that the country isn't at that point where Texas would secede and while he doesn't support the movement, he "understands the sentiment behind it."

"We're not there yet, and if there comes a point where it's hopeless, then I think we take NASA, we take the military, we take the oil," Cruz said.

He jokingly added that popular podcaster Joe Rogan would be president of the newly formed state if it gained independence.

The Texas Nationalist Movement, or "Texit," has said its mission is "to secure and protect the political, cultural and economic independence of the nation of Texas and to restore and protect a constitutional Republic and the inherent rights of the people of Texas."

The movement's official website stated that this "means that Texans determine our own laws and not 2.5 million unelected bureaucrats in Washington. It means that we get a government that begins and ends at the borders of Texas."