John Dickerson notes that the new Texas senator has already butted heads with several of his colleagues:
Do you need friends in the Senate anymore? Ted Cruz, Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, and Sen. Mike Lee of Utah are testing this theory in new ways. The power of Tea Party activists in Republican politics, the public’s low esteem for Congress, and structural changes in the Senate like the elimination of earmarks and the weakening of appropriations power have created more incentives for senators to get by without a little help from their friends.
Cruz has had a series of run-ins with his colleagues since being sworn in only four months ago. He battled Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein over gun control, his Senate Republican colleagues over a threat to filibuster gun legislation; and most recently he tangled with McCain and Republican Sen. Susan Collins over budget procedure.
Should Cruz run for president, John Sides expects this could hurt him:
Cruz’s path to the presidency—if he decides to run—must consist precisely of convincing “the middle” of the party that he’s electable despite the fact that he may be the most conservative member of the Senate (pdf). To do that, he’ll need the support of his fellow party leaders to send that signal. It doesn’t matter if he has “a knack for making his opponents lose their wits.” His opponents will be busy nominating Hillary Clinton or whoever. And it doesn’t matter whether, deep in his heart, he trusts Republicans. What matters is whether he has a knack for making his fellow Republicans trust him.
The Dish 