Ted Cruz on Monday equated Democrats with violent crime.

In an interview with conservative radio host Hugh Hewitt on Monday, the Texas senator said that “the simple and undeniable fact is the

overwhelming majority of violent criminals are Democrats.”

The Republican presidential contender was discussing the attack that killed three people at a Planned Parenthood in Colorado Springs, Colo., on Friday. The shooting suspect, Robert Lewis Dear, was being held Monday with no bond with an initial charge of first-degree murder. 

The suspect's reported mention of "baby parts" at the time of the shooting —as well as the location of the shooting — has linked the incident to the nation's ongoing debate on abortion. It also led some people to blame the incident on the ugly rhetoric surrounding Planned Parenthood.

“This whole episode has really displayed the ugly underbelly of media,” Cruz said. “Every time you have some sort of violent crime or mass killing you can almost see the media salivating. Hoping, hoping desperately that the murderer happens to be a Republican so they can use it to try to paint their political enemies.” 

Cruz said Democrats fight for convicted felons to be able to vote.

“There’s a reason why the Democrats for years have been viewed as soft on crime,” Cruz said. “The Democrats know convicted felons tend to vote Democrat.” 

The Cruz campaign did not immediately respond to a request for the senator's source of information on the political affiliations of criminals.