According to a Gallup poll, nearly 40% of Americans say they are conservative thinkers; 24% say they are liberal.

But is there any group in the country more maligned than conservatives?

Maybe serial killers.

Enter conservative Senator Ted Cruz from Texas. 

Yesterday he announced he is running for president.

Mr. Cruz wants to return America to traditional, conservative tenets.

He is very clear about that and there is little compromise in his platform.

That has angered the left and even some moderate Republicans.

REP. PETER KING (R-NY): "Now Ted Cruz may be an intelligent person, but he doesn't carry out an intelligent debate.  He oversimplifies.  He exaggerates.  And he basically led the Republican Party over the cliff in the fall of 2013."

Congressman King referring to Senator Cruz's attempt to shut down the government if Obamacare was not repealed.

In the Wall Street Journal today the lead editorial compares Ted Cruz to Barack Obama, both men beginning their presidential quest just having two years in the Senate.

Both men are young.  President Obama was 45 at the time he started running.  Ted Cruz is 44.

But the comparisons end there.

However, it is interesting to see how Mr. Cruz's resume is being scrutinized by the media while Barack Obama's inexperience was essentially given a pass.

Here's a Washington Post editorial from January 18th, 2007 quote:

"No Matter what your political leanings are, you're likely to feel at least a twinge of excitement about Illinois Sen. Barack Obama's decision to compete for the Democratic presidential nomination."

The Post basing its assessment on Mr. Obama's mixed race, citing the historical significance of it.

But Ted Cruz is part Cuban, a fact that was immediately brought up:

WHOOPI GOLDBERG, COMEDIAN: "I do.  I want to see your birth certificate. ((APPLAUSE)) And you're a mixed, gentleman, right?  You are mixed.  I want to know, are you talking for the Cuban side or the white side?"

Well that's nice.  Ms. Goldberg also referring to the fact that Ted Cruz was born in Canada.

That shouldn't be a problem for Cruz according to the Harvard Law Review, which says a person born abroad to a U.S. citizen parent is generally considered a natural born U.S. citizen. 

But facts really don't matter anymore in this country do they?

So expect the Canadian deal to be wrapped around Senator Cruz's neck along with other fabrications.

CHRIS MATTHEWS, MSNBC HOST: "Accusing Obama, the president of the United States, of being under communist influence for going to Harvard Law—which of course is where Ted Cruz went!  But he wasn't under communist influence.  This guy is bad news." 

But the record shows that Ted Cruz did not say President Obama was under communist influence at Harvard.

The senator did chronicle the resumes of some professors he considers Marxist and said Mr. Obama might be a good person to lead them.  But sarcasm is not fact.

But again, facts don't really matter anymore.

Talking Points believes that conservative Americans are the most maligned mainstream group in the USA.

If you don't believe in global warming, you're labeled a loon.

If you believe life begins at conception, you're a religious fanatic.

If you want strong action against the jihadists, you're a warmonger.

And on and on.

If any minority group in the country was smeared the way conservatives are, there'd be a Justice Department investigation.

So good luck to Ted Cruz.  He most likely will not win the nomination, but his entry into the race is a positive thing if you believe that America should be a vibrant democracy where all sincere views are considered.

And that's the memo