Ted Cruz kicked off his presidential campaign this morning with a speech at Liberty University. Without using a teleprompter, Cruz spoke eloquently about his parents, his childhood, and stories about his life and family. Intertwining those stories with political positions, the speech was a home run that had the audience of college students cheering and responding with thunderous applause.

Cruz promised to once again make America that “shining city on a hill”, promising to repeal Obamacare and abolish the IRS. He also showed his support for legal immigration, while reinforcing his stance on illegal immigration. He has strongly opposed Obama’s executive actions on illegal immigration. He also spoke against Common Core, and his strong rhetoric against illegal immigration and Common Core immediately sets him apart from the establishment Republicans like Jeb Bush, whose ideologies align more closely with Barack Obama’s than they do with conservative Americans.

Cruz announced his presidency early in the morning by tweeting this video, which seems to have energized the right, as so far, the stagnant GOP pool has been filled with candidates that have been slow to jump into the ring.

I'm running for President and I hope to earn your support! pic.twitter.com/0UTqaIoytP

— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) March 23, 2015