Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on Tuesday delivered a self-aggrandizing rant in the Senate over the latest mass shooting in Boulder, Colorado that took the lives of ten Americans.
While speaking out in opposition to new restrictions on firearms sales in the wake of the shooting, Cruz accused Democrats of using the shooting as an excuse to disarm law-abiding Americans.
"Every time there's a shooting, we play this ridiculous theater where this committee gets together and proposes a bunch of laws that would do nothing to stop these murders!" he thundered. "What happens in this committee after every mass shooting is Democrats propose taking away guns from law abiding citizens."
Cruz then defended Republicans' oft-ridiculed habit of merely offering "thoughts and prayers" after mass shootings instead of taking action to curb gun violence.
"I don't apologize for thoughts or prayers!" he shouted. "And the contempt of Democrats for prayers is an odd sociological thing!"
Cruz's Senate tantrum earned him a swift rebuke from Twitter users -- check out some reactions below.
Ted Cruz is such a sanctimonious & cynical POS.
Shove your thoughts and prayers, Senator. You care more about keeping the gun lobby on your donor list than you do about any gun victims. https://t.co/OfA8cBj8Sh
— Mike Avila, "Dumb Woke Count" (@mikeavila) March 23, 2021
Ted Cruz thinks thoughts and prayers will bring back the 10 people killed in Boulder and the 8 in Atlanta and the countless others dead because senseless gun violence https://t.co/aeS9PgTN3Q
— Wu-Tang Is For The Children (@WUTangKids) March 23, 2021
I'm old enough to remember when half of this man's state was without power and he fled to Mexico.
All talk, no action from this US Senator. https://t.co/bP00rJE3vc
— Katy (@ib_ktiv) March 23, 2021
No one's saying Cruz or any other Republican should apologize for praying.
What people are fed up with — both Democratic and Republican voters, per polls — is the blanket refusal to consider any type of gun control legislation despite hundreds of mass shootings every year. https://t.co/Aetb5CwgCG
— Chris Sommerfeldt (@C_Sommerfeldt) March 23, 2021
I have a pretty active imagination but even I can't see this man humbly offering a heartfelt prayer to a higher power. Ever. https://t.co/ZoWvAOX4X4
— Steve Gorman (@SGSFOX) March 23, 2021
Ted Cruz now speaks entirely in faux-aggrieved, right-wing garble-blargle sentences that will fit on T-shirts he can sell to "own the libs." https://t.co/mbJ5IMI0xs
— Rex Huppke (@RexHuppke) March 23, 2021
"I don't apologize for programming the Roomba" - says person who refuses to do any other chores or duties around the house https://t.co/V10QMfeDEx
— Not Ted Turner (@Not_Ted_Turner) March 23, 2021
Says the man who fled his state in the middle of a snowstorm. This man doesn't believe in God. Doesn't believe in humanity. Only believes in himself and his own bank account. If you think otherwise, I've got a couple bridges on both coasts to sell you. https://t.co/IsJStELqLi
— Uyghurs Wit Attitude (@sheistykhrist) March 23, 2021
Ted, it's not contempt for prayer. It's contempt for you and your convenient substitution of "prayer" for action. https://t.co/YzKWaiAgZf
— Jeff Matty (@MattyHoopLaw) March 23, 2021
Nothing wrong with thoughts and prayers, unless like Cruz you are using them as an excuse to do nothing. https://t.co/WeQGr7fZEq
— Emmy Noether, but a cat (@EWMattingly) March 23, 2021
