Ted Cruz Thinks Obama Should Address Benghazi, IRS Scandal During State Of The Union

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) has a few suggestions for President Barack Obama's upcoming State of the Union address.

Cruz offered his thoughts in a Wednesday statement, listing five questions he thinks Obama should answer in front of the American public. The questions concern the 2011 attack in Benghazi, the IRS targeting of conservative groups, the National Security Agency's surveillance programs, economic recovery and Obamacare.

“As the President prepares his State of the Union address, he has signaled he has no intention of clearing the air,” Cruz wrote in the statement. "The lack of accountability in Washington is creating a crisis of confidence in this country .. These are the questions I hear when I’m home in Texas, and these are the questions the President should answer in order to restore credibility with the people. The State of the Union will be stronger for it."

The outspoken freshman senator, whose attempts to defund Obamacare led to a government shutdown last October, has made Benghazi one of his signature issues.

Last year, he introduced a bill creating a $5 million reward for information on the attack. And in September, he suggested discussions on how to address the crisis in Syria were distracting from the Benghazi investigation.

"When [the Benghazi attack] happened, the president promised to hunt down the wrong-doers, and yet a few months later, the issue has disappeared," Cruz said. "You don't hear the president mention Benghazi. Now it's a 'phony scandal.' We ought to be defending U.S. national security and going after radical Islamic terrorists."

While Cruz has maintained a relatively low profile after his favorability rating plunged post-shutdown, he did attempt to throw a wrench in the omnibus spending bill passed by Congress earlier this month in another stab at derailing the Affordable Care Act. However, this time his colleagues quickly shut down his efforts.

(h/t National Journal)