Senator Ted Cruz (R-TX) has reached out to House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) to criticize four House Democrats who traveled to El Salvador to support the return of deported MS-13 member Kilmer Abrego Garcia. Cruz suggested that Jeffries maintain what he described as “phenomenal bad politics.”
Following Jeffries’ refusal to address the matter, responses from Maxwell Frost (D-FL), Robert Garcia (D-CA), Yassamine Ansari (D-AZ), and Maxine Dexter (D-OR) followed. They faced criticism from Texas Republicans over the choice to visit Latin America on taxpayer funds, especially after the experience of “mistakes” there on Tuesday.
Cruz remarked, “Hakeem. It was clearly unexpectedly poor politics to permit members to go to El Salvador on taxpayer money and then engage with a violent gang.”
“Please, keep it,” he added, throwing in a laughing emoji.
In a retort, Jeffries brought up Cruz’s past trip to Cancun, Mexico during a major winter crisis:
“This is from someone who abandoned his state during a historic winter storm for a vacation in Cancun. At this point, no one is taking you seriously,” said the New York Democrat.
“And that’s the leader, Jeffries, Edward,” he added, using Cruz’s middle name in a pointed comeback.
Cruz, during the backlash from his Cancun trip, admitted it was “a mistake,” expressing concern for his two young daughters, noting they were “somewhat warm.”
“If I had understood how people perceived it in hindsight, I obviously wouldn’t have done it,” Cruz reflected. “That was a mistake. As a leader, you need to be present. You need to be here when Texans are in trouble, which is why I didn’t feel right being away.”
Cruz’s social media team poked fun at Jeffries’ self-important reference to himself as “leader Jeffries,” fueling the ongoing back-and-forth.
Olivia Rondeau is a political reporter for Breitbart News, based in Washington, DC. Find her X/Twitter and Instagram.
