Published 10:43 IST, February 20th 2021
Donald Trump Jr. backs Ted Cruz' Cancun trip, says 'Texas storm Guv's job'; makes blunder
Donald Trump Jr. defended Texas Senator Ted Cruz after the latter received severe backlash over his trip to Cancun amid a harsh winter storm in the state
Donald Trump Jr. on Thursday defended Texas Senator Ted Cruz after the latter received severe backlash over his trip to Cancun amid a harsh winter storm and power outage in the state.
The eldest son of Former US President Donald Trump posted a video slamming criticism against Cruz as “ridiculous” and said Texans should instead point the blame towards someone who has legal authority in crisis situations, like the governor.
“I can't get on this bandwagon trying to cancel the guy. It's totally ridiculous. It's absolutely absurd. In the grand scheme of things, Ted Cruz is a senator. He doesn’t manage crisis in states. That’s a governor’s job. He's a federal employee, they mostly vote on things," Trump Jr. said.
In a tweet, Trump Jr. protested against the “hypocrisy” of trying to criticise Cruz while ignoring the “incompetence” of the “Democrat” governors. However, this tweet was ill-received for one reason that the governor of Texas is a Republican and not Democrat. Governor Greg Abbott was a supporter of Donald Trump, who even backed the former President's claims of fraud in the presidential election last year.
Many Twitter users pointed out the error to Trump Jr. and slammed him online.
Cruz returned home from Cancun on Friday amidst growing criticism and calls for his resignation after he went on a trip when millions of Texans have been suffering through the state’s historic winter storm. Upon his return, Senator admitted that the trip to Mexico was a “mistake.”
In a statement, Cruz explained that his daughters insisted on going on the trip and that he only accompanied them to “be a good dad,” but didn’t intend to stay.
The trip has drawn criticism from leaders in both parties and was seen as potentially damaging to his future political ambitions.
Texas reels under a winter storm, power outage
A winter storm dropping snow and ice, which has also sent temperatures plunging has hit Texas. The deadly storm has crashed power supplies and people are battling the low temperatures with no heat and electricity. Officials in Houston had warned people to prepare for outages and hazardous roads. Earlier, this week, nearly 120 crashes, including a 10-car pileup on I-45, were reported.
On Sunday night, US President Joe Biden declared an emergency in Texas and ordered federal assistance to aid state and local response efforts. The declaration allows the Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Emergency Management Agency to provide assistance, equipment and resources to the affected.
Updated 10:43 IST, February 20th 2021