Senator Ted Cruz is being dragged on Twitter for posting photos of himself helping out Texas residents in a bid to repair the political damage after jetting off to Cancun for a family vacation while his state was suffering from a devastating winter storm.
On Wednesday, 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.
Following the backlash, Mr Cruz travelled back to Texas on Thursday afternoon and admitted that the trip was a "mistake" but he was just wanting to be a "good dad" because his daughters were "cold."
On Saturday, Cruz posted a series of photos of himself helping out his fellow Texans on Twitter in an effort to redeem himself in the eyes of voters. In the post, captioned, "#TexasStrong," Cruz can be seen loading packages of bottled water into residents' vehicles in what appears to be an empty parking lot.
Twitter Reactions
Not long after posting the images, Cruz drew criticism on the platform over the photo-op. Some users slammed him for staging the photo-op to salvage his image in the wake of his controversial trip to Mexico.
"I'm glad someone in Ted Cruz's Senate office finally instructed him on how to fake compassion, humanity, and creating the illusion that he cares about the people he was elected to serve," wrote one Twitter user.
"First you abandon your constituents, now they are crisis photo opps to you? Do you have any shame at all @tedcruz?" tweeted another.
Here are some of the other reactions:
Meanwhile, others pointed out that Cruz was apparently violating CDC rules advising travelers returning from Mexico to self-quarantine for seven days and get tested for COVID-19.
Netizens also drew comparisons between Cruz's response to the disaster with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez's. The U.S. Rep. has raised $5 million in relief for Texas and even volunteered at a food bank in Houston on Saturday.
