Far-right Senator Ted Cruz of Texas is no stranger to eliciting groans from social media users for his belligerent, random, or just plain bizarre social media rants.
Things got weird yet again recently when Cruz—a multimillionaire known for his fondness of vacations to Cancún— tweeted praise for Australia's ruggedness, but railed against its strict methods for preventing the spread of COVID-19.
I love the Aussies. Their history of rugged independence is legendary; I\u2019ve always said Australia is the Texas of the Pacific.\n\nThe Covid tyranny of their current government is disgraceful & sad.\n\nIndividual liberty matters.\n\nI stand with the people of #Australiahttps://twitter.com/disclosetv/status/1448316889063624708\u00a0\u2026— Ted Cruz (@Ted Cruz) 1634147518
Cruz described Australia's "Covid tyranny" as "disgraceful" and "sad," sharing a video of Michael Gunner, the Chief Minister of the Australia's Northern Territory, announcing a wave of vaccine mandates.
Gunner himself soon responded.
G\u2019day from Down Under @tedcruz. Thanks for your interest in the Territory. I\u2019m the Chief Minister. Below are a few facts about COVID down here. https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1448345783409983492\u00a0\u2026pic.twitter.com/mGNyOxlN41— Michael Gunner (@Michael Gunner) 1634528825
Gunner called out Cruz's ignorance, writing in part:
"Nearly 70,000 Texans have tragically died from COVID. There have been zero deaths in the Territory. Did you know that?
Vaccination is so important here because we have vulnerable communities and the oldest continuous living culture on the planet to protect. Did you know that?"
He concluded:
"We don't need your lectures, thanks mate. You know nothing about us. And if you stand against a life-saving vaccine, then you sure as hell don't stand with Australia. I love Texas (go Longhorns), but when it comes to COVID, I'm glad we are nothing like you."
People cheered his response.
Echoing sentiments shared by billions of people around the world, an Aussie politely tells Ted Cruz to f\u2014 off.https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— Ben Rhodes (@Ben Rhodes) 1634536228
BOOM!https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— JerseyJedi *Fully Vaxxed* (@JerseyJedi *Fully Vaxxed*) 1634560481
Texan here and I agree with you .https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— Monica Fraker (@Monica Fraker) 1634555345
G\u2019day to Michael Gunner and Michael Gunner only (and all the indigenous Aborigines holding down Australia of course). G\u2019bye to T. Cruz.https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— Tami Sawyer (@Tami Sawyer) 1634576328
How bloody awesome is this? https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— Abby W (@Abby W) 1634554768
Everyone already loves the Aussies but this schooling of Ted Cruz is extra-delightful.https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— Helen Kennedy (@Helen Kennedy) 1634536650
Nice to see the Australians celebrating the new AUKUS alliance by embracing a time-honored American tradition \u2013 dunking on Ted Cruz.https://twitter.com/fanniebay/status/1449945099383705601\u00a0\u2026— Nick Francona (@Nick Francona) 1634568314
Cruz's comments are still getting dunked on.
Population\nAustralia: 25.9 million\nTexas: 29.2 million\nCOVID deaths\nAustralia: 1,448\nTexas: 69,373https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1448345783409983492\u00a0\u2026— Vaccinate Your Kids (@Vaccinate Your Kids) 1634556782
Texas 69,506 covid deaths = 2,397 deaths per 1M. Australia 1,543 covid deaths = 60 deaths per 1M. \n\nWe're fine thanks mate. \n\nBtw pls fix your abortion laws. \n\nAlso your gun deaths are terrible: 3,683 vs 229 in 2019. \n\nCheershttps://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1448345783409983492\u00a0\u2026— someone start a blind trust so i can do the renos (@someone start a blind trust so i can do the renos) 1634544254
Indigenous communities are vulnerable to the coronavirus. Outbreaks could very much wipe out communities, or send them back twenty years in terms of development. Stop talking nonsense about things you know nothing about.https://twitter.com/tedcruz/status/1448345783409983492\u00a0\u2026— Mike Stuchbery \ud83d\udc80\ud83c\udf77 (@Mike Stuchbery \ud83d\udc80\ud83c\udf77) 1634551116
Doesn't look like Cruz will be welcome in Australia any time soon.
