Meet Stefano De Stefano, the Republican Energy Lawyer Hoping to Oust Ted Cruz

WASHINGTON — Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is one of the state’s best-known conservative politicians, but one GOP long shot is hoping he can oust the firebrand Republican with a simple appeal: “A return to normalcy.”Stefano de Stefano, a little-known Houston energy attorney with no political experience, said that Cruz’s brash politics has contributed to national divisiveness, and that he’s running as the candidate for “anybody who wants to see Cruz gone, see change, see more normal politics in this country.”“Thus far, I’ve gotten a lot of positive feedback,” de Stefano, a self-described “free market” and pro free trade Republican, told The Dallas Morning News. “It takes a little time because, as a normal person, I don’t have a long career of building a political network.”He’s the first of potentially many to challenge Cruz in what most political observers expect will be an easy primary victory for the sitting senator. Dan McQueen, the former mayor of Corpus Christi who resigned after just 37 days, has also said he's eyeing a run. Cruz's campaign declined comment for this story.   Continue reading...