“Washington, D.C. – Back in late 2000, Ted Cruz found himself with one of the hottest tickets in town. As a former clerk to Chief Justice William H. Rehnquist, Mr. Cruz, a junior aide on George W. Bush’s presidential campaign, had scored a seat inside the Supreme Court for the oral arguments in Bush vs. Gore, which would decide the election.

“But when the superiors asked Mr. Cruz to give up his spot to Donald Evans, a close friend of Mr. Bush’s and the campaign’s chairman, Mr. Cruz initially balked, refusing to hand over his ticket. He backed down only after an angry phone call from a senior staff member. But the incident, which a Cruz adviser declined to discuss, has become lore.

“To those who knew him as a young domestic policy adviser in Mr. Bush’s headquarters in Austin, Tx., the moment was classic Cruz – reflecting a brilliant and unusually ambitious upstart who chafed at orders from superiors and often rubbed people the wrong way but always saw himself destined for a lofty place in history.

“Mr. Cruz, 44, a first-term senator from Texas, became the first Republican to declare himself a candidate for president, promising a campaign that would be about “reigniting the promise of America.” He said at Liberty University, a Christian college in Lynchburg, Va.: “The power of the American people as we stand up and fight for liberty knows no bounds.”

“Those who have known him for years say Mr. Cruz always seemed both driven to advance and savvy in his tactics, and very likely to seize a politically expedient moment for personal gain. But what surprised them most, they said, is watching his evolution from a practical, Ivy League-educated lawyer and Republican insider into the Tea Party firebrand who helped orchestrate a strategy that ultimately shut down the federal government for 16 days in 2013.

In an exclusive interview with Newslo, Mr. Cruz said that “intelligence will only get you so far in life; hard work and the ability to solve problems are just as important, if not crucial for getting ahead in everything you attempt.”

“The fact that I have an Ivy League education means nothing I’m not using it the right way, and the same goes for anyone out there who thinks their intellect is their biggest advantage. It definitely is a head start, but it won’t amount to much if one doesn’t combine it with grueling hours and willpower,” he told Newslo.

Mr. Cruz also added: “That’s probably one of the reasons why all those left-wing satire sites are writing so much about me, they’re probably threatened or something. But, there’s no reason for that; it’s not like I plan on shutting them down when I’m President.”