Ted Cruz Says Nonbelievers Aren't 'Fit to be Commander-in-Chief'

2016 presidential hopeful Ted Cruz recently argued that he doesn't believe an atheist should be elected as Commander-in-Chief of the United States. 

Cruz, a Texas senator, made his comments while speaking at the National Religious Liberties Conference in Iowa late last week.

"Any president who doesn't begin every day on his knees isn't fit to be commander in chief of this nation," Cruz said at the event.

Cruz, whose father is an evangelical minister, isn't the first GOP presidential hopeful to suggest that only candidates of a certain faith are fit for leading the country.

Retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson received criticism earlier this year after he argued that he would not elect a Muslim to become president.

The 2016 presidential hopeful said in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" that he wouldn't advocate for a Muslim president unless the candidate revoked the central tenants of Shariah Law.

"I would not advocate that we put a Muslim in charge of this nation. I absolutely would not agree with that," Carson said on the media program.

"I guess it depends on what that faith is," Carson said. "If it's inconsistent with the values and principles of America, then of course it should matter. But if it fits within the realm of America and consistent with the Constitution, no problem."

At last evening's GOP debate in Milwaukee, Cruz and Carson also discussed the Bible and a plan for taxation the U.S., with Cruz arguing that "The current system isn't fair. Washington is fundamentally corrupt. There are more words in the IRS code than there are in the Bible — and – and not a one of them is as good."