First Take: Can a 'wacko bird' take flight in the GOP?

Ted Cruz isn't shy.

He's combative. He rejects compromise as "the mushy middle." He's not inclined to wait his turn. And he doesn't seem to mind annoying his Republican elders with tactics that critics see as destructive and short-sighted.

So perhaps it's no surprise that little more than two years after he was sworn in to the Senate, the 44-year-old Texan on Monday became the first contender to officially announce his campaign for the Republican p