EDITORIAL: Four good ideas from Ted Cruz, and two that need work

Sen. Ted Cruz was like many college students back in his undergraduate days at Princeton University — he managed to find a little bit of trouble. In his freshman year, he got involved in a regular poker game, racking up nearly $2,000 in debt. He had to go to his aunt to get a loan, then work two jobs over two years to pay it off.

The now tough-talking Texas senator recounted that story in a meeting with the Review-Journal editorial board last month to discuss his presidential candidacy. In fact, he said he's a far better poker player now and would be willing to play for the RJ's endorsement. We instead opted for having him show his cards on policy positions. In the interest of helping Nevadans decide which candidate to support in the Feb. 23 Republican caucus, here are four of Sen. Cruz's positions that came up aces, and a couple that need some reshuffling:

— Federal lands: The federal government owns huge swaths of the West, including more than 80 percent of Nevada's land, far more than the Bureau of Land Management could ever successfully manage — as the agency has shown time and again. Sen. Cruz advocates transferring as much federal land as possible back to the states and ideally into private hands, where it can then generate property tax revenue and be put to more productive uses. "I think it is completely indefensible that the federal government is America's largest landowner, and Nevada pays the highest price. … What I'm proposing is the land equivalent of a pay-for. If the federal government is proposing expanding in one area, [it] must have an equivalent giveback that will meet or exceed that [area], so that federal land ownership isn't growing."

— Tax reform: The IRS is the most feared agency in America, a title rightly earned through its enforcement of an overbearing, impossible-to-understand tax code that forces citizens to cough up billions of dollars annually in compliance costs. Sen. Cruz wants to abolish the IRS, institute a flat tax of 10 percent, eliminate the corporate income tax and replace it with a 16 percent business tax, and abolish the payroll tax, among other measures. With his plan, he said the U.S. economy would see a 44 percent increase in capital investment, leading to the creation of 5 million new jobs. And Americans would have more money in their pockets, he said. "Every income level sees a double-digit percentage increase in take-home pay."

— Repealing Obamacare: In the two years since the Affordable Care Act was enacted, it has proved to be neither affordable nor provide care, with the Obama administration and Democrats failing to understand that health insurance doesn't equal health care. Most Americans have seen their premiums and deductibles dramatically rise, along with the out-of-pocket costs required to reach those deductibles. And the government forcing citizens to either purchase insurance or face a penalty enforced by the aforementioned IRS is a ridiculous mandate. Sen. Cruz termed eliminating Obamacare the single most important regulatory reform, noting the 2016 election should serve as "a referendum to repeal Obamacare."

— Border security: The continuing immigration issue not only puts a huge strain on schools and a host of other public services — which we know all too well in the Las Vegas Valley — but also threatens national security. Sen. Cruz proposes finishing a 700-mile wall on the southern border (saying only 36 miles have been completed under President Barack Obama) and tripling the size of the Border Patrol, but he also offered a simple solution: "If you enforce existing law, in time the problem solves itself."

Two issues on which we disagree with the first-term senator:

— Social conservatism: Sen. Cruz said that if he's elected president, on his first day in office, he'd have the Department of Justice open an investigation into Planned Parenthood. There's a fair argument to be had about whether Planned Parenthood — and myriad other organizations — should receive federal funding. But such grandstanding about inauguration day, while it may help Sen. Cruz win the GOP nomination, could cost him in the general election.

— Internet gaming: This is a huge issue for Nevada's gaming industry, which is uniquely positioned to be a national leader in Internet poker. A re-interpretation of the federal Wire Act only allows for intrastate web gaming, and federal lawmakers are seeking to reverse that interpretation or ban Internet gaming outright. Sen. Cruz said he has an "open mind" on Web gaming, but doesn't have a position. Considering he enjoys a good game of poker — his college indiscretions notwithstanding — he should take the side that allows Americans to again lawfully play cards with real money.