New York Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez joined Texas Democrats this morning in calling for Sen. Ted Cruz to resign for his role in helping inspire a pro-Trump attack on the nation’s Capitol on Wednesday.
“Sen. Cruz, you must accept responsibility for how your craven, self-serving actions contributed to the deaths of four people yesterday,” Ocasio-Cortez wrote in a tweet. “And how you fundraised off this riot. Both you and Senator Hawley must resign. If you do not, the Senate should move for your expulsion.”
On Wednesday, Cruz and Sen. Josh Hawley led a handful of Senate Republicans in objecting to Joe Biden’s victory without evidence — something that even Sen. John Cornyn (who votes down bills to reduce drug prices with the face of a mortician’s handiwork) could not bring himself to do.
“I ain’t going anywhere,” Cruz replied, explaining that he was merely ensuring the integrity of the election.
Moments before rioters stormed the Capitol building and lawmakers had to be evacuated, Cruz gave a speech on the Senate floor touting the same argument. “Let me be clear, I am not arguing for setting aside the result of this election,” Cruz said in his speech while voting to attempt to do exactly that by objecting to the electoral count of Arizona.
Other Democrats, including Beto O’Rourke, Julián and Joaquin Castro, and Texas Democratic Party Chair Gilberto Hinojosa have also called on Cruz to resign.
“In the weeks since Ted Cruz declared his intentions, many have warned of the devastating harm that deceitful rhetoric can and will have,” Hinojosa said in a statement. “Nevertheless, Ted Cruz acted in bad faith by leveraging fringe theories and blatant disinformation to challenge the legitimacy of the 2020 election results and position himself in the 2024 Republican presidential primary.”
Early Thursday as Congress wrapped up certifying the results of the election, Cruz issued a written statement condemning the violent mob of Trump supporters that stormed the Capitol a day earlier.
The junior Texas Senator described the events as a “despicable act of terrorism and a shocking assault on our democratic system.” He then thanked Capitol police and said Congress needed to “come together.”
The irony is not amusing considering Cruz, shy of only Trump, led the charge in disputing the results of the election.
Glaringly absent from Cruz’s little-too-late statement and his exchange with AOC Thursday morning is who actually attacked the Capitol.
“Terrorist attack” is not particularly light language, and yet, Cruz fails to describe the reality that millions of Americans saw unfolding on TV: hundreds of Trump supporters, many sporting racist symbols, attacking the Capitol the same day Cruz was attempting a legislative coup of his own, at the request of the president.
Photo: Franmarie Metzler; U.S. House Office of Photography / Samuel Corum/Getty Images
Fernando covers Texas politics and government at the Texas Signal. Before joining the Signal, Fernando spent two years at the Houston Chronicle and previously interned at Houston’s NPR station News 88.7. He is a graduate of the University of Houston, Jack J. Valenti School of Communication, and enjoys reading, highlighting things, and arguing on social media. You can follow him on Twitter at @fernramirez93 or email at fernando@texassignalarchive.com
