Sen. Cruz faces backlash for Cancun trip during Texas freeze

Feb. 18 (UPI) -- Sen. Ted Cruz said Thursday he was being a "good dad" by accompanying his daughters on a trip to Cancun, Mexico, after facing backlash for leaving Texas as millions of his constituents were without power and water amid a historic winter storm.

The Republican senator was spotted by fellow travelers Wednesday at Houston's George Bush Intercontinental Airport. Photos showed him boarding a flight to Cancun with his wife and two daughters.

He returned to Texas on Thursday afternoon.

Houston Police Department spokeswoman Jodi Silva told the Houston Chronicle the department provided security for Cruz at the airport Wednesday.

"A member of Ted Cruz's staff contacted HPD on Wednesday afternoon," she said. "They stated would be arriving that afternoon and requested HPD assistance on his arrival."

Cruz confirmed the flight Thursday in a statement.

"With school canceled 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 said.

"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."

Fellow lawmakers and local leaders took Cruz to task for flying to a tropical vacation spot during the natural disaster ravaging his state. Rep. Gene Wu, D-Texas, said Cruz's actions were "on-brand."

"Guess which U.S. senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing to death and having to boil water?" Wu tweeted. "I have so many expletives."

Wu also compared Cruz's actions to those of former Rep. Beto O'Rourke, who ran against Cruz in the 2018 Senate race.

O'Rourke has been tweeting about his involvement with a group of volunteers who called hundreds of thousands of seniors in Texas to help them with heat, food, water and shelter.