WASHINGTON – Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, faces a backlash after photos went viral showing he and his family traveled to Cancun, Mexico as Texans suffer without heat, water, and electricity historic winter storm of the state.
The images, shared on social media Wednesday night, showed Cruz and his family waiting at an airport gate with luggage and boarding a plane. NBC News checked several of the photos.
After Cruz’s Senate office failed to respond to repeated requests for comment Thursday, Cruz released a statement explaining his decision to leave the state and saying he would return home Thursday afternoon. He said it was an “angry week for Texans” and that his family had “lost warmth and strength too”.
Senator Ted Cruz, R-Texas, carries his luggage at Cancun International Airport before boarding his plane back to the United States on Thursday.Reuters
“With school canceled for that week, our girls asked for a trip with friends,” said Cruz. “To be a good father, I flew with them last night and I’m flying back this afternoon. My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to investigate what is going on in Texas.
“We want our electricity back, our water on, and our homes warm. My team and I will continue to use all of our resources to keep Texans updated and safe,” he added.
Cruz made a report similar to his testimony when NBC News met him at Cancun airport on Thursday before his flight home.
“We had no heat and no electricity, and yesterday my daughters asked if they could go on a trip with some friends and Heidi and I agreed, so I flew down with them last night and dropped them off here, and now I’m going back to Texas and continuing to work on restoring power, “said Cruz.
A source knowledgeable of the situation said Cruz was originally booked to return home on Saturday and that he booked his return flight ticket at 6 a.m. on Thursday.
The Senate is on hiatus this week.
Before Cruz released his statement, the Houston Police Department confirmed that Cruz’s staff had asked him on Wednesday afternoon to assist him with his arrival and movements through the George Bush Intercontinental Airport in Houston.
“They reached out to us, told us he was arriving and we could help. When he arrived at the Houston airport, we monitored his movements,” a police spokesman told NBC News.
The Democrats were outraged when millions of people across Texas struggled without electricity or heat and suffered disruptions in the water system for several days in record temperatures.
The state Democratic Party urged Cruz to resign from Congresstweet: “Texans are dying, and you’re flying to Cancun. #TedCruzRESIGN.” A website called “FlyinTedCruz.com” was also used to raise funds for fighting Texans. The site name is a game nicknamed “Lyin ‘Ted” by former President Donald Trump for Cruz as they competed in the 2016 Republican President Primary.
Galveston Mayor Craig Brown suggested that Cruz was out of contact. Tell MSNBC: “It’s an answer to me from someone who didn’t have to experience this. If he were in the middle of it and would experience this, I think there would be a different attitude.”
Rep. Mark Pocan, D-Wis., Tweeted Thursday“It must be easy not to believe in climate change when you leave millions of Texans suffering without electricity or water to sit on a beach in Cancun.”
Robert Mann, communications director for Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco, during Hurricane Katrina, said he could not imagine anyone as prominent as Cruz, who left his own state after a disaster.
“This is usually the time when elected officials want to show their constituents how hard they are committed to helping them,” said Mann, who is now a professor of journalism at Louisiana State University. “It goes against all common sense to leave the state at a time like this, let alone take a vacation in a delicious, warm place like Cancun. It’s one of the stupidest and most callous things I’ve ever seen in a politician.”
In a radio interview with “The Joe Pags Show“On Monday, Cruz urged his Texans to stay there.
“This storm is dangerous, and a second storm is expected this week which will make the situation worse. So if you can, stay home. Don’t go out on the streets. Don’t risk the ice,” said Cruz said. “I spoke to a meteorologist this weekend who said [with] By combining these two storms, we could see up to 100 people lose their lives in Texas this week. So don’t risk it. Protect your family and just stay home and hug your kids, “he said.
In early December, Cruz tweeted a video clip on a CNN segment about how Democratic officials were caught regarding Covid-19 for not following their own guidelines. Cruz called them “hypocrites – complete and utter hypocrites”.
He said in a tweet not to forget that Austin Mayor Steve Adler “took an eight-person private jet to Cabo and WHILE IN CABO recorded a video urging Austinites to stay home if they can … this is not the time to relax. ‘”
Vaughn Hillyard, Julie Tsirkin, Caroline Radnofsky, Sara Mhaidli, Matthew Mulligan and Peter Alexander contributed to this.
