Here's Why Ted Cruz Thinks the Obama Administration Is Failing on Terrorism

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) warned Tuesday that the Obama administration will not be able to effectively fight terrorist attacks as long as it's unable to identify radical Islam as a source of those attacks.

"You cannot defeat radical Islamic terrorism if you're unwilling to utter the words 'radical Islamic terrorism,' " he said on Fox News.

The Obama administration has been criticized for refusing to single out radical Islamic terrorism, even after the French prime minister declared that his country is "at war… against terrorism and radical Islam" after last week's attacks that left 17 dead. On Sunday, Attorney General Eric Holder was asked twice if the U.S. is at war with France against radical Islam.

"Well, I would say we are at war with terrorists who commit these heinous acts and who… use Islam," Holder said on NBC. In an interview with ABC, he seemed to dodge the question again by saying "I certainly think that we are at war with those who would commit terrorist attacks and who would corrupt the Islamic faith in the way that they do."

Cruz also slammed the Obama administration for failing to send anyone to France's unity rally on Sunday. The White House later admitted it should have sent someone, but Cruz said that bad decision fits with the pattern of the last six years.

"It was a very visual manifestation of what's happened over six years," he said. "Over six years, America has  receded from leadership in the world."

Cruz was pressed on whether he would try to strengthen leadership by the White House by running for president, and he acknowledged it's an option he's looking at. "It's certainly something I'm looking at very seriously," he said.

He also criticized Republicans for continuing to find moderate candidates from the "mushy middle" who end up losing.

"There are a lot of folks in Washington who argue that the way Republicans should win is that we should nominate a candidate from the mushy middle, someone who is right in the middle, who's near the Democrats so there's not much distinction," he said. "We keep trying the theory, and it keeps not working every single time we do that."

"Whether it's Gerald Ford, whether it's Bob Dole, whether it's John McCain, whether it's Mitt Romney, the result over and over again is, we lose," he said.