Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) had some rare words of praise this week for First Lady Michelle Obama after she went without a headscarf during a recent visit to Saudi Arabia.
“Kudos to First Lady Michelle Obama for standing up for women worldwide and refusing to wear a Sharia-mandated headscarf in Saudi Arabia,” the potential Republican presidential contender wrote Tuesday on Facebook. “Nicely done.”
The first lady and President were in Saudi Arabia to attend the funeral of King Abdullah, who died last week.
Her decision not to wear a headscarf was criticized by some in Saudi Arabia as insensitive and praised by others as a statement in favor of women’s rights.
Saudi women are required by law to wear headscarves in public, although foreign visitors are not obligated to do so, according to the Associated Press.
As the New York Times noted, many prominent women, including German Chancellor Angela Merkel, former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, and former First Lady Laura Bush, have forgone the head coverings during visits to Saudi Arabia.
h/t Huffington Post
