UPDATE : Cruz is returning to Texas, cutting his vacation in Cancun short
Category: News & Politics
Via: john-russell • 5 years ago • 187 commentsBy: sbaker@businessinsider.com (Sinead Baker) 38 mins ago (MSN)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
- Texas Sen. Ted Cruz is under fire after unverified images suggest that he left Texas on Wednesday.
- Claims circulated on Twitter that he had flown to Cancun. Cruz has yet to comment.
- Insider was not able to immediately verify the images, which prompted outrage all the same.
- Visit the Business section of Insider for more stories.
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz came under a barrage of criticism late Wednesday as unverified images circulated on Twitter appearing to show him taking a flight out of the storm-ravaged state.
Insider has been unable to immediately verify the images, and could not immediately reach Cruz or one of his representatives for comment. As of early Thursday, no media outlet had reported a response from Cruz.
Nonetheless, the images proved politically explosive. The Texas Democratic Party called for Cruz's resignation, accusing him of abandoning the state in a time of crisis.
Cancun, Mexico, Cruz's alleged destination, became a trending topic on Twitter as speculation mounted.
Insider could not unambiguously prove from the images where Cruz was. But here is what Insider could find, based on information circulating Thursday morning:
The images appear to have been first shared by Twitter user Juan Gomez, though it is not clear whether he took the pictures:
—Juan Gomez (@Juan_Gomez18) February 18, 2021
David Schuster, a former MSNBC journalist, later tweeted that he had "confirmed" that Cruz and his family had flown to Cancun on Wednesday night "for a few days at a resort they've visited before."
He did not give details about how he confirmed it, or with whom.
—David Shuster (@DavidShuster) February 18, 2021
Keith Edwards, a former advisor to Democratic Sen. Jon Ossoff and who was previously involved with the anti-Trump Lincoln Project, posted other images which he said were sent to him by someone who saw Cruz on their flight to Cancun.
—Keith Edwards (@keithedwards) February 18, 2021
And he said he was sharing a picture of Cruz in the airport around 35 minutes before the flight to Cancun:
—Keith Edwards (@keithedwards) February 18, 2021
One Twitter user noted that one of the images showing the man appears to display the time in the background as 4:10 p.m.:
—Nesler (@thatnesler) February 18, 2021
San Antonio ABC affiliate KSAT ran a story Wednesday night asking whether Cruz had gone to Cancun.
The outlet noted that United flight UA1020 departed Houston for Cancun at 4:44 p.m. - 34 minutes after the time shown in that picture.
Another unverified image claims to show Cruz after arrival:
—Simon Barnboym (@barnboym) February 18, 2021
The image shows a man wearing different clothes, but who appears to be wearing the same shoes as in previous pictures and with the same white bag with a yellow tag.
Beto O'Rourke, the Democrat who unsuccessfully challenged Cruz for his Senate seat in 2018, gestured to the speculation on Thursday morning.
In an interview with MSNBC, O'Rourke attacked Cruz, describing him as "the junior Senator from Texas, who I understand is vacationing in Cancun right now when people are literally freezing to death in the state that he was elected to represent and serve."
—The Recount (@therecount) February 18, 2021
Insider has contacted the people who posted all of the above images seeking more information, but has not yet heard back.
Insider also checked the images in these tweets using the reverse image-search software TinEye, which can show whether images have been published before. The service did not find the images on other websites, suggesting that they are recent.
Cruz has a wife and two daughters. Some of the unverified photos show Cruz with a young girl with a similar appearance to one of his daughters, but no other people who resemble his family members.
Some Twitter users noted that the mask the man was wearing matches one that Cruz often wears:
—Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) February 18, 2021
And others claimed that the ring worn by the man in the picture looked to be the same as one Cruz has been pictured wearing:
—Jane Austen (@JaneAusten1813) February 18, 2021
Users also claimed that another unverified image showed Cruz in the airport's United lounge. It is not clear where the image originated or who took it.
—Gilly (@gillypearl) February 18, 2021
Cruz appears to have previously vacationed in Cancun. Page Six reported in January 2020 that Cruz was seen with his family at Nizuc Resort & Spa.
The images prompted a furious backlash, even without all the facts being clear.
The official account of the Texas Democratic Party shared Schuster's tweet, writing: "Texans are dying and you're on a flight to Cancun. #TedCruzRESIGN"
—Texas Democrats (@texasdemocrats) February 18, 2021
Gene Wu, a Democratic Texas state representative, also tweeted criticism of Cruz based on the images, though he did not offer further evidence:
—Gene Wu (@GeneforTexas) February 18, 2021
Sawyer Hackett, a senior advisor for Democrat Julian Castro, the former mayor of San Antonio and the former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, shared some images, writing: "It appears in the middle of the worst energy crisis in the history of Texas, @tedcruz is on his way to Cancun with his family."
—Sawyer Hackett (@SawyerHackett) February 18, 2021
Cruz's Twitter accounts do not give an indication of his location, and are instead retweeting updates about the storm or sharing other political updates.
On Wednesday, around the time he is alleged to have been traveling, Cruz's office released two press releases on his behalf - one attacking New York Governor Andrew Cuomo and another paying tribute to Rush Limbaugh.
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Man of the people ? Ha Ha
A good time to finish the wall perhaps?
SMFH
Change it from ''Lying Ted'' to ''Disappearing Ted''.
I was thinking, piece of shit scumbag that needs to be out of a job.
ted and lindsey are the biggest wimps in the senate.
um, so? The Senate is basically in recess right now, they come back to work according to the Senate schedule on Monday afternoon. If you had the means and were on a short vacation from work, would you head down to warm beaches or stay where there's no power or heat?
Texas has TWO United States senators. They have a more exalted public position than the other 30,000,000 or so people who are Texans. The fact that the Senate is in recess is all the more reason he should be at his office in Texas offering whatever help he can in the CRISIS, not vacationing on a beach in Mexico.
What we have here folks, is another irrelevant non story being foisted upon us
How about being on-site to help coordinate federal aid? Or just plain showing concern for the Texans that are dying during this Republican made fiasco.
Wouldn't Texas officials have a better idea of where the federal aid is needed the most?
So you feel that senators have absolutely no jobs to do in their own state? What exactly do you think they do in Washington if they are not there representing their states?
Because the Governor and state agencies have done such a bang up job leading into this crises?
Which is why we are talking about FEDERAL aid.
So despite the fact that Texans are dying, Senators shouldn't be bothered with that.
Going for another strawman argument, again?
Unless you want to point out where I said that Cruz should be DIRECTING federal funds...
Tell me about it! Every single time you have a losing argument, you respond with STRAWMAN ARGUMENTS.
President Biden has made an emergency declaration for Texas for this. Senator Cruz, by himself, cannot make any such declarations or allocate any federal monies for Texas. Senator Cruz is only one voice out of 100 in the Senate and has to work in the confines of his authority. Senator Cruz cannot tell state officials where to spend monies allocated to them from the federal government.
So what do you feel Cruz should be doing in this crisis? I've heard he should be back helping out. Helping to do what? My son in law mentioned there's no water available and why isn't he using his contacts to help with that. Not sure what a Senator can do about making bottled water appear on store shelves when trucks and trains are not moving. About the only vehicles moving would be military vehicles, that's the national guard which answers to the governor. So tell me exactly what Cruz should be doing?
I understand the desire to rag on Cruz, he's a Republican who supports Trump and is an easy target. I have to wonder, as large as this storm impact is and how large the area is, how many other federal representatives and senators have gone to warmer climates for the week while they are not in session..
Yeah, I know. You hate it when I call out your strawman arguments.
Nobody expects him to.
Nobody expects him to.
What do "leaders do? Oh yeah, LEAD! Give comfort to those that elected you, to the best of your ability. Hell, throw them some paper towels!!!
Reassuring Texans that help is on the way.
What do "leaders do? Oh yeah, LEAD!
Why don't you just look up how many leaders left during crisis's of this magnitude? Why simply "wonder" unless you are afraid of the answer?
LEADERS LEAD!
TEXAS LEADERS LEAVE!
Doing a bang up job...
Ya, move along, nothing to see here.../s
For example?
I’m genuinely curious. What do you think a senator should be doing in this situation? Snow has also fallen across much of the rest of the country, but I can’t recall hearing about anyone in the Senate doing something about it.
Tacos!
It's optics and talking about elitist. His whole state is suffering, and he gets on a plane so he doesn't even have to pretend to suffer along with the people he represents.
It's pretty obvious to me.
Also, they might want to take this time to discuss how to avoid this in the future with the gov, don't you think?
If millions of people in Illinois were without power or water for days because of a storm I would expect Durbin and Duckworth to be on the ground here trying to help, and I have no reason to believe they wouldnt be.
You make it sound like one thing was a direct result of the other. Considering that his day job has a schedule that keeps him very busy but is on a break right this minute, and he has a family, don’t you imagine he might have planned this trip a while ago?
Right now? This week? While the gov is actually still dealing with the crisis? Right this minute would be the best time to sit down to talk about the future?
No, I don’t think that. I think that would be a terrible idea. What makes you think the governor has time to take for a thing like that?
I don’t know about power and water, but Governor Pritzker issued a disaster proclamation two days ago. What are the Illinois senators doing about it? My quick glance through the week’s news indicates they are focused on other things.
You expect your Senators to represent Texas on Federal matters? Like FEMA, or FEDERAL assistance during a crisis?
Be proactive??? GASP!!!!!
Remember, this happened to Texas 10 years ago, they were told what they needed to do to prevent it from happening again, and chose it ignore all the recommendations.
You and others have said they can't do anything, personally, about the current crisis, so yes start figuring out what steps to take to prevent it next time.
OK, since we are going to go with make every excuse possible.... let me put it another way....
It's optics and talking about elitist. His whole state is suffering, and he gets on a plane so he doesn't even have to pretend to suffer along with the people he represents. I don't care if he had plans or not. It just looks really bad.
Well, he did say he'd granted his daughters' requests to take a trip because school was out.
So, causation - established. Blame - shifted onto his kids.
What a guy.
Call me crazy but it just seems like when you take on the job of oh, I don’t know, a US Senator, you may occasionally have to say “sorry sweetie, Daddy has to work.”
But when your daughters ask you to do what you already want to do, anyway, like escape a frozen wasteland, you do it, then blame them. Or you do, if you're Ted Cruz.
If you had plane and resort reservations reserved with your own money, you’d care a lot.
I think you have to want for it to look bad. I don’t think it ever occurred to me to worry about what a senator was doing during a weather disaster. They just don’t have a meaningful role. And any role they might have likely would not require their physical presence at the sight of the disaster, while it was happening.
Except he just admitted he looked bad, Tacos!
Watch the video.
And believe me, I have lost my fair share of money on flights for one reason or another, but always because I had a responsibility I had to deal with, and I am not worth what he is which is $4.4 million
So, therefore it was bad? I don’t think so. And who knows how he really feels about it?
He has made apologies and excuses, so we get an idea of how he thinks he looks, which is pretty bad. And it is bad. When the state that you are supposed to be representing is in a mess and you, decide last minute to flee, don't you think that looks bad?
New name, Fled Cruz.
He booked the return ticket at 6 am the next day, after he was caught leaving.
When he finally addressed the furor earlier Thursday, Cruz said he flew to Cancun to accompany his daughters at their request and was flying back to the U.S. the next day. He initially did not clarify whether he had always intended the trip to last less than 24 hours, saying only that he “wanted to be a good dad” and “drop off” his daughters in Cancun. He later acknowledged that his trip was booked through the weekend.
He took 2 full bags of clothing with him, that he returned with. Why take a suitcase if you're only staying for a few hours???
If I were a senator and people were freezing to death in my state because our infrastructure had failed so completely I would be working with state officials to see what solutions we could come up with at the state and federal level to address the issues. Or at the very least I would be volunteering at one of the warming shelters. You know, the whole optics thing. Just doesn't look good when the going gets tough and leaders get going.
Of course Cruz has always just been in this thing for the money, so it is not shocking that he feels no sense of responsibility or obligation to the people of Texas. He just wants the paycheck and the book deals.
Of course, you have no idea of what he might be doing behind the scenes
Chilling on a beach in Cancun. And forgive me for assuming it is absolutely nothing, the guy has a long history of never actually bringing anything to the table, just trying to grab headlines with stupid statements.
Um ... drinkin' Tequila and modelling his latest speedo.
If he did that, he would be shredded in the media for engaging in a political stunt/photo op. They might be able to use another pair of hands, but his “help” would likely cause more disruption than anything else.
But still better than running away to Cancun lol.
He could always throw rolls of paper towels at them.
Lol would anyone even be remotely surprised if he ran away? He is a coward, that is well established. Honestly though, not that it makes any difference, he is about as useful in Cancun as he is here, which is to say not useful at all. The guy doesn't do anything. He doesn't advance any policy agenda, doesn't introduce any serious legislation, he just gets paid a shitload of taxpayer $s to "own the libs". Too bad "owning the libs" doesn't keep the power on, improve infrastructure, or fix or improve anything at all.
==================================================================================
Cancún
81° FCURRENT WEATHER
11:08 AM
I just got a text from my sister, who lives in San Antonio
====================================================================
"Saw a picture of Ted Cruz on a flight to Cancun!
He should be denied re-entry into the country, that Ahole. "
Because of the weather my astabula. He knows he may be facing legal problems due to his role in supporting the take over of the capitol so he ran like a little bitch. Nice try Ted, but we have an extradition treaty with Mexico.
Caught, Cruz will now return to Texas today and presumably plead ignorance.
Apparently, he was supposed to stay home and shovel out everyone’s driveway.
Or at least you know, be in the country while his constituents are suffering. I know expecting him to work with state and federal authorities on a solution to the issues that have been laid bare is a fools dream, but he could at least make an appearance at a warming shelter. you know setting an example, being a leader, that kind of crazy shit.
But nah, Cancun looks like it is really nice this time of year, priorities you see.
He could have shoveled SOMEBODY'S driveway FFS. Anything, any kind of leadership would have been a thousand times better than what this asshole did.
You can't legitimately excuse this. Trying only makes you look foolish.
You know Texas (like all states) has two senators. Do you even know the other one’s name? Do you what he has been doing all week? Do you care? I’ll bet the answer to at least two of those questions is “no.” But by golly, this Cruz business is a national emergency!
It’s worse than that. I don’t care. No one in the history of ever has cared about what a US Senator was doing during a snow storm before today.
As for your other comment, your cheap, personal jabs say more about you than they do about me.
cheap ?
Sen. Ted Cruz calls Mexico trip amid Texas winter crisis and power outages 'a mistake'
I'm watching him now! What a lying sack of shit!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He couldn't even keep the same story at different airports.
*edit* Also, the NY Times has text messages from Heidi Cruz, who is bragging to her neighbors about the good deal they got when they made their vacay plans.
ha ha ha, thanks kavika ...
he grew a beard so any visitors to his home would know who the man was there...
Bye-bye, Ted!
he's pretty much f'n done. too bad he's going to stink up DC for 6 more years.
Ted seems to have a lot of stories. This is the one that may stick to him.
Ha!!!!!!
Donald Trump has weighed in with his best thoughts on the topic. He wants everyone to know that Ted Cruz' wife is still ugly.
Lol, Ted's no prize either.
America would probably be better off if he'd just stay in Cancun.