On Tuesday, following days of criticism for jetting off to Cancun while his constituents were snowed in, freezing, and burning furniture to stay warm, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) appeared on a right-wing podcast, where he raged against his neighbors for posting text messages of his family planning the trip, demanding that people "don't be a**holes."
On CNN that evening, former George W. Bush strategist Matthew Dowd tore into Cruz for his chutzpah.
"What do you say to Ted Cruz, who says to the people who outed him for trying to act like he was dropping his kids off, or whatever he was trying to spin there? 'Don't be a-holes?'" said anchor Erin Burnett.
"Well, I would say to Ted, I agree with him that we all ought to treat each other better and be more civil," said Dowd. "But he ought to have a modicum of self-respect in this. When he lectures people about behaving and behaving better, it'd be like Ty Cobb lecturing people on sportsmanship, or Bernie Madoff lecturing people about investment fraud, or not doing investment fraud. He sits — to quote 'Elf' — he sits on a throne of this kind of stuff."
"Ted Cruz is not focused on the problem. He needs to buy a mirror and look at the real problem," added Dowd. "Take responsibility for your actions, take accountability, and don't start lecturing people. He basically became an internet troll. And don't lecture people on things you do every day of the week."
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