Senator Ted Cruz is having a bad week.
"Well, if you hate Ted Cruz, this a pretty fun week."
"And, if you like Ted Cruz, then you're Ted Cruz."
In February 2021, unprecedented weather befell the state of Texas, of which Cruz has been a senator
since 2013. Since Winter Storm Uri hit Texas, nearly 40 people have died due to related issues,
per The Hill. Even the more fortunate Texans still faced dire issues, leading to a crisis situation
across the state. Power plants were unable to deliver gas and electricity. Water pipes froze and
burst. And, unlike the rest of the country, Texas has its own power grid and was thus
unable to borrow power from its neighbors, per The Cut. To make matters worse, housing in Texas
isn't built for the cold — it's built to withstand a desert climate, meaning no
one was prepared to live without heat and hot water. Things became so dire that many broke
with social distancing standards to seek warmth with strangers in emergency shelters, per Parade.
This brings us full circle to Cruz, who, instead of hunkering down with his constituents in a show
of solidarity, fled the freezing temperatures for the warmth of a resort town in Mexico.
Angry Texans snapped photos of Cruz, along with his wife and kids, boarding a plane to Cancun.
As if the photos weren't evidence enough, the next day, texts from Cruz's wife, Heidi,
were reportedly leaked to the journalists detailing her excitement for the luxury vacation.
Heidi Cruz might have to take stock of her friends because
clearly some of them were all too eager to sell her out when the going got tough.
Reform Austin, a local publication based in Austin, Texas,
obtained text messages that reportedly show Heidi boasting about her family's upcoming trip
and trying to convince some of her neighbors to come along. One message on the group thread says,
"Anyone can or want to leave for the week?
We may go to Cancun there is a direct flights at 4:45pm and hotels w capacity."
One of the recipients replied,
"We are now thinking along the same lines-sounds wonderful."
Said another:
"We are supposed to go to Cabo Friday."
Things went from bad to worse when Heidi followed up with the group, outlining the
family's plans to stay at a luxury resort. She reportedly wrote, per Business Insider,
"The Ritz Carlton has rooms at like $300 and we've been there many times
great property god security etc no issues."
Heidi followed up yet again with specifics about prices and flight times.
She confirmed the family planned to fly out on a Wednesday, return on a Sunday,
and that rooms at the Ritz cost exactly $309.
Of course, according to the vast majority of social media,
this is not a good look. One thing led to another, and keen-eyed photographers
snapped photos of the couple boarding the plane, prompting the viral
scandal. What started as a vacation soon turned into an exercise in damage control.
Senator Ted Cruz found his public image in a tailspin when the story of his
impromptu spring break went viral. Cruz likely hoped that if he ignored his critics,
the situation would blow over, but it quickly became apparent that
that wasn't going to happen. The texts had betrayed them: Cruz and Heidi,
along with their two daughters, apparently planned to spend five days in Cancun.
However, facing massive public backlash, Cruz was forced to cut his trip short. As the scandal
continued to swirl out of control, Cruz "promptly" ended his vacation and flew back to Houston just
two days after touching down in Mexico. Cruz told reporters upon his return, per CNN:
"I started having second thoughts almost the moment I sat down on the
plane. All of us who are parents have a responsibility to take care of our kids."
Cruz was referring to an earlier statement in which he tried to
downplay the situation by placing the blame on his kids. He said in a statement to CNN,
"With school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends.
Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon."
The backtracking did little to calm the social media firestorm against
Cruz. Rather than portraying himself as a loving father, Cruz appeared to have money to blow
while his constituents froze, an image, per The Hill, that could haunt him in future elections.
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