And now Ted Cruz weighs in with what’s obviously going to be the GOP’s talking point on vaccines: Cruz: Parents With ‘Religious Convictions’ Should Get a Pass on Vaccines.

That’s right. “Religious freedom” is now going to include the freedom to put your own children — and other people’s children — at risk of death from entirely preventable diseases.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Tuesday said he believes children should be vaccinated, but he said he supports exemptions for people with certain religious beliefs.

Cruz said that there is “widespread agreement” that children should be vaccinated, but he added that states should be in charge of deciding whether vaccines are mandatory, according to Politico. He also said that states should consider exceptions for those with “good faith, religious convictions.”

The Texas senator said that he has had his children vaccinated.

“We’ve got two little girls, we’ve vaccinated both our girls and would encourage people to do the same,” he told Politico.

And of course, he falls back on the eternal whine of the persecuted Republican; it’s that left wing media just making stuff up again.

Cruz told reporters that the controversy over vaccines is “largely silliness stirred up by the media,” according to Politico.

“Nobody reasonably thinks Chris Christie is opposed to vaccinating kids other than a bunch of reporters who want to write headlines,” he said.

Is Chris Christie actually opposed to vaccinating kids, or is he just pandering to the anti-vaxx crowd? Only he knows the truth of that, but this is far from the first time he’s made statements suggesting parents should be able to choose whether or not to vaccinate.

We should also note that Ted Cruz is simply restating a plank of the Texas GOP platform.

Immunizations ― All adult citizens should have the legal right to conscientiously choose which vaccines are administered to themselves or their minor children without penalty for refusing a vaccine. We oppose any effort by any authority to mandate such vaccines or any medical database that would contain personal records of citizens without their consent.

I predicted the GOP would become the anti-vaccine party a few days ago; looks like it’s happening even faster than I thought it would.