Texas senator Ted Cruz was caught scrolling through his phone during the opening testimony at the Senate hearing into the deadly Capitol riot, less than a week after his controversial trip to Cancun.
Current and former top law enforcement officials appeared before the Senate Homeland Security and Rules committees on Tuesday to testify about the intelligence and security failures that led to the violent breach of the U.S. Capitol on Jan. 6.
Five people died and several more were injured on the day as a mob of Trump supporters stormed the federal building in a bid to stop members of congress members of Congress from affirming their vote in favor of then-President-elect Joe Biden.
Ted Cruz Caught Fiddling with His Phone During Steven Sund's Testimony
Steven Sund, who was serving as the chief of the Capitol Police at the time of the insurrection and resigned in the wake of the riot, gave a grim account of the events that day, saying he witnessed the "worst attack on law enforcement and our democracy" in his 30-year career. He described how officers were beaten with fists, bats, sticks and pipes.
Sund said his former agency had been prepared for an increased level of violence, but "none of the intelligence we received predicted what actually occurred." As he said this, the C-SPAN livestream from the chamber cut to Cruz, who was seen browsing through his cellphone, appearing to be either messaging someone or searching for something as he repeatedly tapped the screen.
Twitter Reactions
Social media users were quick to criticize the Republican senator after the clip went viral with some slamming Cruz for not paying attention on the job while others made references to his recent trip to Mexico.
the Republican senator sparked widespread criticism after being spotted boarding a flight to Cancun with his family while many of his constituents were stuck at home, struggling to cope with power outages and frigid conditions amid a devastating winter storm
"Because he doesn't give a sh*t about even pretending to do his job," wrote one user, while another commented, "Planning his next 24hr getaway with the fam."
Here are some of the reactions:
