Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz was likely caught off guard on Wednesday night in the Andrew Mellon Auditorium in Washington, D.C., when President Donald Trump joked about nominating him for the U.S. Supreme Court.
During remarks promoting the administration’s new Trump Account initiative, Trump praised Cruz as “a brilliant legal mind,” The Daily Mail reported.
“He’s a brilliant man,” Trump said. “If I nominate him for the United States Supreme Court, I will get 100 percent of the vote. The Democrats will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out, and the Republicans will vote for him because they want to get him the hell out, too.”
The audience responded with laughter, though it was unclear whether Cruz shared the sentiment.
“No, just no,” Cruz said shortly afterward during an appearance on the Ruthless Podcast, according to video obtained by the Daily Mail.
“Hell no,” Cruz added.
Even if Trump were serious, a Supreme Court nomination would require a vacancy, as justices serve lifetime appointments and there is no indication that any seat will open in the near future.
The Ruthless Podcast is hosted by Josh Holmes, Comfortably Smug, and John Ashbrook, who regularly interview Republican lawmakers and political figures.
The hosts were the first to air Cruz’s reaction to Trump’s remarks.
Whether the comment was intended as a joke remains unclear, but it underscored that Cruz, a former political rival of Trump during the 2016 presidential race, remains within the president’s good graces.
Earlier this week, a report indicated Cruz privately criticized Trump and Vice President JD Vance while speaking with donors.
“Mr. President, if we get to November of 2026 and people’s 401(k)s are down 30 percent and prices are up 10 to 20 percent at the supermarket, we’re going to go into Election Day and face a bloodbath,” Cruz told donors, according to Axios.
“You’re going to lose the House, you’re going to lose the Senate, and you’re going to spend the next two years being impeached every single week,” he said.
Trump was reportedly displeased with the remarks.
“F you, Ted,” Cruz recounted Trump saying.
The exchange came weeks after reports that Cruz is preparing for a potential presidential run in 2028.
The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday declined to reinstate a Florida law that would have allowed officials there to prosecute migrants who entered the state illegally. The court did not explain its ruling, which also noted the absence of any dissenting opinions. The order was issued in response to an emergency application.
Florida’s immigration law, SB 4-C, criminalizes entering the state after illegally entering the U.S. and evading immigration authorities. Last year, the Supreme Court allowed a similar law in Texas to take effect.
U.S. District Judge Kathleen Williams, an Obama appointee, issued an indefinite injunction against the law, finding it likely preempted by federal immigration law and unconstitutional.
Florida appealed to the Supreme Court last month after a three-judge panel from the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the injunction.
State Attorney General James Uthmeier argued in his appeal to the Supreme Court that the state’s new policy does not conflict with federal law.
It’s not clear why the high court allowed the similar Texas law to take effect but not the Florida statute.
“Florida carefully crafted both provisions to track, mimic, and depend upon federal immigration law precisely,” he wrote, adding that a contrary view “strikes at the heart of states’ ability to protect their citizens from the devastating effects of illegal immigration.”
Meanwhile, Democratic politicians in and out of Minnesota are continuing to fan the flames of outrage with gaslighting remarks aimed at demonizing federal immigration enforcement agents and operations.
