Ted Cruz Bites Back at Critics Furious Over His Leaving Texas Ahead of Major Winter Storm

Ted Cruz Bites Back at Critics Furious Over His Leaving Texas Ahead of Major Winter Storm

Zachary Leeman

Thu, January 22, 2026 at 2:15 PM UTC

2 min read

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Screenshot via Verdict with Ted Cruz podcast

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) pushed back on critics pouncing on him over an image of the senator on a plane to California just days before Texas is set to get hit with a major winter storm.

“Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) was spotted earlier today, January 20, 2026, on a plane heading to Laguna Beach as the state of Texas braces for a rare ice threat and arctic cold front,” political strategist Shea Jordan Smith wrote on X this week.

Included was an image of Cruz on his flight. The post itself has more than eight million views as of Thursday.

Cruz’s office later put out a statement, dismissing criticism and explaining that Cruz was on a pre-planned trip and he’ll actually be returning to the Lone Star State before the storm is projected to hit.

“Senator Cruz is currently on pre-planned work travel that was scheduled weeks in advance. He will be back in Texas before the storm is projected to hit,” a spokesperson for the senator said in a statement, first shared with KHOU.

Multiple critics invoked another moment from Cruz’s career where he went viral and earned plenty of mockery. In February 2021, Cruz was heavily criticized after took a trip to Cancun, Mexico, while Texas was hit with the deadly Winter Storm Uri.

The senator returned to Texas at the time and admitted his trip was “obviously a mistake.”

“It was obviously a mistake, and in hindsight, I wouldn’t have done it,” he said.

The latest storm is expected to stretch across 2,000 miles eventually, while it’ll begin in Texas and Oklahoma. Heavy snowfall and freezing rain are expected to begin Friday, hitting northern Texas and cities like Dallas and Houston. The storm will eventually move its way to the East Coast.

Texas Governor Greg Abbott (R) has declared a state of emergency in his state over the approaching harsh weather.

“Based on current forecasts, the State of Texas is acting to ensure Texans have the resources they need before severe winter weather impacts communities across Texas,” the governor announced this week. “I thank emergency management personnel and first responders for working tirelessly to keep Texans safe.”

The post Ted Cruz Bites Back at Critics Furious Over His Leaving Texas Ahead of Major Winter Storm first appeared on Mediaite.

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