Pastor Rafael Cruz, the father of Texas Senator Ted Cruz, says that socialism is behind the drive to legalize gay marriage.

Speaking over the weekend at The Family Leadership Summit in Ames, Iowa, Cruz compared President Barack Obama to former Cuban leader Fidel Castro.

“That same man [Castro] that had been talking about hope and change, now was talking about how the rich were evil, how they oppress the poor, and about the need to redistribute the wealth,” Cruz said.

“Socialism requires that government becomes your God,” Cruz is quoted by The Des Moines Register as saying. “That's why they have to destroy the concept of God. They have to destroy all loyalties except loyalty to government. That's what's behind homosexual marriage.”

The one-day event was sponsored by The Family Leader, Iowa's leading opponent of marriage equality, and the National Organization for Marriage (NOM), the nation's most vociferous opponent.

Cruz also attacked the Affordable Care Act, widely known as “Obamacare.”

“Obamacare is going to destroy the elderly by denying care, by even perhaps denying treatment to people who are in catastrophic circumstances,” he said. (A portion of Cruz's speech is embedded on this page. Visit our video library for more videos.)