Club for Growth endorses Ted Cruz for U.S. Senate

Former Texas Solicitor General Ted Cruz is gathering endorsements as he tries to become the leader of the pack in the rather crowded GOP primary for retiring Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison's seat. The Republican received the stemp of approval last week ofThe Club for Growth, a fiscally conservative 527 national organization:

"Ted Cruz will fight for economic liberty and will be a stalwart defender of the U.S. Constitution," Club for Growth President Chris Chocola said in a Thursday statement. "He will be an ally for other pro-growth Senators and Texans will be proud to have him representing them in Congress. Club Members will do everything they can to see that Ted Cruz is elected as Texas's next Senator."

Cruz already scored an endorsement from FreedomWorks PAC, former Majority Leader Dick Armey's organization, earlier this week. He also is backed by Sen. Mike Lee (R-Utah), a conservative with tea party backing who defeated Sen. Bob Bennett (R-Utah) in the 2010 primary.

The Republicans vying to be the last man or woman standing for the general election include Cruz, Railroad Commissioner Elizabeth Ames Jones, former Railroad Commissioner Michael Williams, former Dallas Mayor Tom Leppert and former Texas Secretary of State Roger Williams have announced campaigns. Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst is also expected to jumps into the race. On the Democrat side, Retired Lt. Gen. Ricardo Sanchez has announced he will seek his party's nomination.

- JP