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---
title: Marco Rubio Allies Turn Up the Heat on Ted Cruz
description: Two ads from the Rubio-backing Conservative Solutions PAC appeared on the Internet Monday both criticizing Cruz.
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author: Daniel White
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article:published_time: 2016-01-19T15:32:28.000Z
article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:41:55.542Z
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og:title: Rubio Super PAC Calls Cruz&#x27;s Tax Plan &#x27;Canadian&#x27;
og:description: Playing off questions over his birthplace.
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twitter:title: Rubio Super PAC Calls Cruz&#x27;s Tax Plan &#x27;Canadian&#x27;
twitter:description: Playing off questions over his birthplace.
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# Rubio Allies Turn Up the Heat on Cruz

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<!-- video src="https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/3lpY61UQ.m3u8" -->
## Video: Rubio Super PAC 'Tax Plan' Ad on Ted Cruz

[Watch (HLS stream): Rubio Super PAC 'Tax Plan' Ad on Ted Cruz](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/3lpY61UQ.m3u8) (0:30)

![Rubio Super PAC 'Tax Plan' Ad on Ted Cruz](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/3lpY61UQ/poster.jpg?width=720)

_Published 2016-01-19_


by 

[Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/)


## Daniel White


Jan 19, 2016 3:32 PM UTC

![Two ads from the Conservative Solutions PAC were uploaded to YouTube on Monday, both criticizing Cruz.](https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blte1067c4d3fa791d2/6988799abc6cfcf29f3db4d2/screen-shot-2016-01-19-at-9-59-00-am.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=3:2)

Two ads from the Conservative Solutions PAC were uploaded to YouTube on Monday, both criticizing Cruz.

Two ads from the Conservative Solutions PAC were uploaded to YouTube on Monday, both criticizing Cruz.Youtube

by 

[Daniel White](https://time.com/author/daniel-white/)


## Daniel White


Jan 19, 2016 3:32 PM UTC

A super PAC backing Florida Sen. Marco Rubio in the Republican primary launched a broadside at opponent Texas Sen. Ted Cruz.

Two ads from the Conservative Solutions PAC were uploaded to YouTube on Monday, both criticizing Cruz. The ads are set to air in early primary states, where Rubio supporters are [looking to knock some steam out of Cruz.](http://time.com/4172034/marco-rubio-criticism-republicans/)

“Ted Cruz calculates his positions for political gain,” a narrator begins in one ad, painting Cruz as hard to pin down on “on immigration, Syrian refugees, ethanol, trade, you name it.” Titled “CalculaTED,” the ad concludes calling Cruz “consistently calculated.”

Another 30-second ad the Rubio PAC riffs on the ongoing debate over Cruz’s Canadian birth and subsequent eligibility for President. “What’s Canadian about Ted Cruz?” a narrator asks, quickly pointing to the conservative’s tax plan, which the ad compares to the systems found in “European socialist countries.”

The two Senators are [going back-and-forth](http://time.com/4166119/ted-cruz-marco-rubio-super-pac-ad/) into the early-voting action in Iowa, where Cruz has a clear advantage, and in New Hampshire, where Rubio is slightly ahead, according to an average compiled by RealClearPolitics.

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