Ted Cruz spotted on a plane to Laguna Beach ahead of Texas winter storm
WASHINGTON, DC - JANUARY 14: Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) arrives via the subway in the basement of the U.S. Capitol ahead of a vote on January 14, 2026 in Washington, DC. Republicans voted to block a Venezuela war powers resolution after receiving assurance
DALLAS - A photo of Senator Ted Cruz on a plane to Laguna Beach as Texas braces for a winter storm is drawing a lot of attention.
Ted Cruz Leaves Texas
What we know:
The photo posted by Shea Jordan Smith on X was reportedly taken on Tuesday.
It appears to show the senator from Texas heading to coastal California while the rest of the state prepares for a weekend of possible ice and snow.
What they're saying:
A spokesperson for Sen. Cruz confirmed that he did leave town on Tuesday.
"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," the spokesperson said in a statement to FOX 4.
The backstory:
In February 2021, Cruz was heavily criticized for vacationing in Cancun, Mexico while millions of his constituents were suffering with no power, heat, or running water.
Temperatures in the Lone Star State plunged to dangerous record lows and overwhelmed the state’s power grid. Then, many without power and heat had to deal with frozen pipes that later flooded their homes.
The storm claimed the lives of an estimated 246 people across the state.
Sen. Ted Cruz returns home, says Cancun trip during Texas’ deadly winter power crisis a mistake
Sen. Ted Cruz says it was a mistake to leave frozen Texas behind with his family to visit a luxury resort in sunny, warm Mexico. What was nearly obvious to everyone is now obvious to him.
Cruz apologized for leaving Texas with his family to visit a luxury resort in sunny, warm Mexico. He called it a "mistake" and told reporters in hindsight he wished he hadn’t gone.
"I'd initially planned to stay through the weekend and to work remotely there but as I, as I was heading down there I started having second thoughts almost immediately because the crisis here in Texas, you need to be here on the ground. It's not the same as being here," he said in an interview with FOX's Sean Hannity.
The Source: The information in this story comes from a post on social media by Shea Jordan Smith, Sen. Ted Cruz's spokesperson, and past news coverage.