Cruz has angered much of the GOP with his fight against President Barack Obama's health care law and the potential government shutdown it could cause.
Nevertheless, the Senator is undeterred by the critics.
On Tuesday, he took his edict to the Senate floor in support of his plan to defund Obamacare, saying he would speak "until I am no longer able to stand."
Most experts say Cruz's epic appearance, which has reportedly surpassed the Rand Paul filibuster earlier this year, will not actually block Obamacare.
A key procedural vote on its funding is set for today. Cruz subtly acknowledged as much, saying his long speech was to simply "make D.C. listen."
What does one talk about after hours and hours go by? As long as he doesn't yield the floor, anything he wants. So he got to say goodnight to his kids.
Ted Cruz briefly read Dr. Seuss' Green Eggs and Ham, knowing they would be watching on TV, then returned to more pressing issues on the pulpit.
CNN political analyst Gloria Borger, in response to this well-publicized effort, said his Republican detractors think Cruz is putting his career above all else.
Cruz has been in Washington for less than a year, but his short stint has been an effective lesson in partisan politics. The question is whether it will pay off.
The House of Representatives has tried 42 times to roll back Obamacare, but their efforts have gone nowhere in the Democratic-controlled Senate.
Cruz has upped the ante, as his latest battle to disrupt Obamacare is tied to funding the government in the new fiscal year that starts on October 1.
The House passed the bill last week. But Senate Democrats are not about to allow the health care bill to be unraveled, therefore risking a government shutdown.
Cruz's refusal to give up the fight has rankled many of his fellow Republicans. Democrats, meanwhile, are sitting back and watching the intraparty fight.
While the Ted Cruz 2016 talk has already begun, he could alienate his colleagues to a point where he becomes marginalized and completely ineffective.
Or his principled stand can help to grow a movement of disenchanted conservative voters, handing him the 2016 Republican nomination in a landslide.
Or somewhere in between. Either way, it should be wild to watch.
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