Ted Cruz draws flak for traveling to Cancun as winter storm overwhelms Texas [Video]

WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW:

• In a video interview on Thursday, GOP Sen. Ted Cruz said that “it was a mistake” to leave Texas and go to Cancun as Texas struggled with power outages and winter storms.
•  A video, posted by the Recount, showed demonstrators rallying outside Cruz’s home as they demanded his resignation.
• Cruz also faced another backlash after his past tweets, criticizing California’s power outage, have reemerged.

Republican Senator Ted Cruz confessed on Thursday that it was wrong to leave Texas and go to Cancun while many Texan households endured power outages and freezing winter storms.

In a video interview shared by the Recount, Cruz said: “It was obviously a mistake. In hindsight, I wouldn’t have done it.”

“I was trying to be a dad,” the senator continued. “And all of us have made decisions — when you got two girls who have been cold for two days and haven’t had heat or power and they’re saying, ‘Hey look, we don’t have school, why don’t we go. Let’s get out of here.’”

As the interview was being recorded, a group of people could be heard saying “resign” in the background.

The Recount also posted another video, showing protesters flock outside Cruz’s residence with signs that say “RESIGN” and “Cancun Cruz.”

The senator drew widespread criticisms after reports surfaced on Thursday morning that he went to Cancun in Mexico while millions of his constituents were facing extremely cold weather without heat and electricity. Cruz was assisted by police officers as he went to the airport as confirmed by the Houston Police Department.

The senator reportedly considered staying in Cancun until Saturday but eventually opted to book an earlier flight to Texas on Thursday.

Texas Democrats have called for the resignation of Cruz given his departure amid the catastrophe.

“The Texas Democratic Party calls on Ted Cruz to resign or be expelled from office,” Texas Democratic Party Chairman Gilberto Hinojosa said in a statement.

This same week, Cruz faced another criticism after his previous tweets, slamming California’s power outages, have resurfaced. He later backed off from those statements, saying that he had “no defense.”

The power grid in Texas is not connected with the two major power grids in the country. The current power grid is not capable enough to operate under the freezing temperatures which have overwhelmed various US states in the past few days.

On Thursday evening, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) announced that about two million Texan households have already gotten back their electricity.

“As of this afternoon there are no residential power outages due to lack of power generation,” Abbott tweeted. “If any residence doesn’t have power it is due to downed power lines or the need for the power company to manually reconnect. If you don’t have power contact your local power provider.”

Source: The Hill