Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) tried to mock New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani for urging the public to conserve energy amid a dangerous heat wave cooking the East Coast — but there was one glaring thing he overlooked.
"New York: it's hot out there, and the power grid is working overtime to keep us cool," wrote Mamdani on X. "Set your AC to 78 degrees, turn off lights/electronics you're not using, and unplug what you can. Our City is doing its part too: maintaining the 78 degrees rule in our buildings, dimming/turning off our lights during peak electricity demand, asking private partners to do the same, and powering down non-essential equipment."
"A stable grid means the AC stays on, and lives are saved. Let's ease demand — and get through the heat — together," he concluded.
Cruz lashed out, acting as if such a request for energy conservation is ridiculous. "In a first-world country, you could turn on the A/C…." he wrote.
However, he was quickly reminded in the Community Notes that a 78-degree AC setting is standard advice from public utilities during a heat wave — and that in fact, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and the Texas power grid have both made identical recommendations when heat waves hit Cruz's own state.
Still other commenters on X reminded Cruz that his reaction the last time there was a major power crisis in Texas, during a devastating winter storm that left some constituents dead or burning their own furniture for warmth, was to fly away to Cancun, and then blame his daughters when caught.
