Sen. Ted Cruz announced that he is running as a candidate for the GOP nomination in the 2016 presidential race on Monday and promptly sent Twitter into a tailspin. Speaking at Liberty University, Cruz opened the first major campaign of the 2016 presidential season with a kickoff speech courting cultural conservatives and declaring that he will devote himself to 'reigniting the promise of America.' The Christian conservative addressed his religious faith, his father's Cuban roots and his unquestioned conservative credentials, saying 'for so many Americans the promise of America seems more and more distant.' Scroll down for video . No sonner had Sen. Ted Cruz announced that he is running as a candidate for the GOP nomination in 2016  than the hastag '#TedCruzCampaignSlogans' started trending with many people poking fun at the fact that he was actually born in Canada . The majority of tweets featuring the '#TedCruzCampaignSlogans' hashtag were from people mocking Cruz's hardline conservative values . And he asked the enthusiastic crowd to 'imagine a president that finally, finally, finally secures the borders.' 'Imagine a simple flat tax,' he said. 'Imagine abolishing the IRS.' It didn't take long for Twitter to be awash with quips about Cruz and his hardline conservative values which started trending with the hastag '#TedCruzCampaignSlogans'. The overwhelming majority of tweets poked fun at Cruz and amongst other things the fact that he was born in Canada, however some of h is supporters also got in on the act and started using the hashtag to tweet their support for him. A divisive figure even in his own party, Cruz is not expected to be the sole GOP contender for long. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker and two Senate colleagues, Kentucky's Rand Paul and Florida's Marco Rubio, are eyeing campaign launches soon. A divisive figure even in his own party, it didn't take long for Twitter users to start mocking Cruz by comparing him to Sarah Palin, questioning his links to large corporations and even accusing him of having 'daddy issues' Following his election to the Senate in 2012, the former Texas solicitor general quickly established himself as an uncompromising conservative willing to take on Democrats and Republicans alike. Criticized by members of his own party at times, he won praise from tea party activists for leading the GOP's push to shut the federal government during an unsuccessful bid to block money for President Barack Obama's health care law. The son of an American mother and Cuban-born father, Cruz is positioning himself to become potentially the nation's first Hispanic president. While he was born in Canada, two lawyers who represented presidents from both parties at the Supreme Court recently wrote in the Harvard Law Review that they think Cruz meets the constitutional standard to run. Should he fail to win the nomination or the presidency, Cruz would retain his Senate seat through 2019. He also could elect to run for re-election in 2018, having broadened his national network of allies and donors during this presidential campaign. While the overwhelming majority of tweets poked fun at Cruz, some of his supporters also got in on the act and attempted to hijack the hashtag to promote what they see as his good points . The former Texas solicitor general has quickly established himself as an uncompromising conservativeand he gained international attention when he shut down the government in early 2014 .
No sonner had Sen. Cruz announced that he is running for the 2016 GOP nomination than the hastag '#TedCruzCampaignSlogans' started trending . Soon Twitter was awash with quips about Cruz and his hardline conservative values . One of the most popular subjects for the countless memes and tweets is the fact that Cruz was actually born in Canada . While the overwhelming majority of tweets mocked Cruz, some of his supporters also got in on the act and attempted to hijack the hashtag .