In a recent CNN report, New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie had some tough words for Ted Cruz for what he viewed as blatant hypocrisy.
"I have no sympathy for this -- and I see Sen. Cruz and it's disgusting to me that he stands in a recovery center with victims standing behind him as a backdrop," Christie said in an interview with CNN anchor Chris Cuomo on Wednesday. "He's still repeating the same reprehensible lies about what happened in Sandy (and) called on Congress Wednesday morning to work fast on a bill to aid Texas after Hurricane Harvey."
In the wake of Superstorm Sandy, Cruz, along with Texas Sen. John Cornyn, had voted against a relief bill in 2013. Cruz had claimed that the spending package had contained "unrelated pork" and that "two-thirds of that bill had nothing to do with Sandy."
Since the statement came out, Politifact released a report that refuted Cruz's claims.
Cruz defended his position while at the George R. Brown Convention Center Shelter in Houston on Wednesday:
"I'm sorry that there are politicians who are really desperate to get their names in the news and are saying whatever they need to do that," he said. "For folks who are focused on raising political shots and snipes about the Sandy bill, facts matter. And the fact is that the Sandy bill was over $50 billion and 70% of it was not emergency funding. Only 30% of the funding was emergency funding."
That statement was refuted by a Washington Post fact check which states, "It is wildly incorrect to claim that the bill was 'filled with unrelated pork.' The bill was largely aimed at dealing with Sandy, along with relatively minor items to address other or future disasters."
Although, a study by Taxpayers for Common Sense noted many items in at least one version of the bill were not Sandy-related, including $150 million for fishery disaster areas in Alaska damaged by a Japanese tsunami, $4 million for repairs at the Kennedy Space Center, and $20,000 for a new car for the Inspector General of the Justice Department among other items.
"Let me be very clear about this: Sen. Cruz was playing politics in 2012, trying to make himself look like the biggest conservative in the world," Christie fired.
He added, "And what I said at the time, both to him and everybody else, was if you represent a coastal state, don't do this because your day is going to come and you're going to expect people to help you."
Gov. Christie, who has been at the center of his own recent controversies, seems to sincerely want to help, insisting on the passing of a relief bill. But considering all of his own issues as of late, he might also see a window of opportunity to redirect criticism elsewhere.
Either way, Harvey victims need relief and the best way to get that is with bipartisan support for relief funding.
Hopefully, this instance becomes a powerful reminder to all of Congress that natural disasters are no joke, and no matter where they happen in the U.S., our politicians have a responsibility to act.
Thank you for supporting MRCTV! As a tax-deductible, charitable organization, we rely on the support of our readers to keep us running! Keep MRCTV going with your gift here!