Marching in lockstep with the Republican party's continued embrace of former President Donald Trump and his conspiracy theories, Republican Senator Ted Cruz of Texas recently touted his friendship with Trump on Twitter.
The Senator met with Trump at his Mar-A-Lago resort and said the pair talked about the most effective ways to restore Republican control of Congress in the 2022 midterms.
Cruz assured his followers that Trump was in "great spirits!"
This past January, just hours after a mob of pro-Trump extremists stormed the Capitol to upend the joint congressional session acknowledging Biden's 2020 election victory, Cruz objected to the counting of certified electoral votes from swing states Trump lost.
This action, along with Cruz's months-long campaign to smear the credibility of American democracy, was seen as his continued approval of Republican efforts to abandon the rule of law and the peaceful transfer of power.
Progressive Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York reminded Cruz of this with her response to the awkward photo.
The two have frequently traded barbs on the social media outlet before, with Ocasio-Cortez repeatedly calling on Cruz to resign for his support of the rhetoric that prompted the insurrection. Ocasio-Cortez, who felt her life was endangered during the Capitol Siege thanks to her status as a favorite enemy of the right, said Cruz's actions were partly responsible for attempts on her life.
Cruz, perhaps unsurprisingly, didn't offer a response to Ocasio-Cortez's rebuke—but others certainly did.
The Congresswoman was far from the only one to mock Cruz's photo.
Many noted the time during the 2016 Republican primaries when Trump insulted the appearance of Cruz's wife—only to be met with undying support from Cruz after becoming the Republican nominee.
While Trump is still the favorite to win the Republican nomination in 2024, Cruz's name has also been floated as a potential contender.
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