White House press secretary Jen Psaki took a thinly veiled jab at Texas Republican Senator Ted Cruz during Thursday’s press briefing.
“Well I don’t have any updates on the exact location of Sen. Ted Cruz. Nor does anyone at the White House,” Psaki answered when asked a question about Cruz, who had been boarding a flight from Houston, Texas, to Mexico with his family late Wednesday night. “Our focus is on working directly with leadership in Texas and the surrounding states on addressing the winter storm and the crisis at home.” (RELATED: Sen. Ted Cruz Flew To Cancun With His Family Amid Winter Storm, Power Crisis In Texas)
Psaki added that the White House is focusing on “the many people across the state that are without power, without the resources they need” before stating she expects that would also “be the focus of anyone in the state or the surrounding states that was elected to represent them.”
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Following the reporting on his trip, Cruz released a brief statement and was photographed boarding a flight back to Texas on Thursday afternoon.
Reuters has acquired a photo of Ted Cruz at the Cancun airport today on his way back to Texas.
Notice how he’s wearing a mask with the Texas State flag on it. pic.twitter.com/Tdl6msfPBx
— Yashar Ali (@yashar) February 18, 2021
“This has been an infuriating week for Texans. The greatest state in the greatest country in the world has been without power,” Cruz wrote in his statement. “We have food lines, gas lines, and people sleeping at the neighbors’ houses. Our homes are freezing and our lights are out. Like millions of Texans, our family lost heat and power too. With school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends.”
“Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon,” he continued. “My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas. We want our power back, our water on, and our homes warm. My team and I will continue using all our resources to keep Texans informed and safe.”
Winter Storm Uri wrought havoc on Texas’ power grid over the past week, killing dozens and leaving millions of Texans without power or running water. Governor Greg Abbott demanded an investigation into the state’s power grid on Tuesday
“The Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT) has been anything but reliable over the last 48 hours,” Abbot wrote in a statement. “Far too many Texans are without power and heat for their homes as our state faces freezing temperatures and severe winter weather. This is unacceptable.”
Abbott proceeded to thank his “partners in the House and Senate for acting quickly on this challenge” and vowed to “work with them to enhance Texas’ electric grid and ensure that our state never experiences power outages like this again.”