Friday, January 07, 2022

Ted Cruz Referred To Capitol Insurrection As A "Terrorist Attack" 18 Times Last Year

(Video of complete Hayes clip)

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On Friday, CNN's Daniel Dale provided proof that Ted Cruz "described the Capitol riot as a terrorist attack or referred broadly to rioters as terrorists" at least 17 times in 2021. (I found an 18th incident.)
January 7, 2021, official statement: The day after the Capitol was stormed, Cruz issued a written statement in which he said, "The attack at the Capitol was a despicable act of terrorism and a shocking assault on our democratic system. The Department of Justice should vigorously prosecute everyone who was involved in these brazen acts of violence." Cruz also tweeted out the statement -- and repeated the "despicable act of terrorism" language in the tweet.

January 7, 2021, interviews: Cruz gave a series of interviews to Texas television stations in which he repeatedly described the events of the day prior as a "terrorist attack."
"What happened yesterday in Washington was horrific. It was a terrorist attack on the United States Capitol. It was despicable. It's a dark day in our nation's history when terrorists can assault the citadel of democracy," he told NBC 5 of Dallas-Fort Worth.
"We saw a terrorist attack on the United States Capitol, it was despicable, it was an assault. And every one of those violent criminals who attacked the Capitol, they should be fully prosecuted," he told CBS19 of the east Texas city of Tyler . . . "We saw a terrorist attack on the United States Capitol."
"I do think it's really cynical for them to be trying to take advantage of what was a tragic event that occurred yesterday in Washington," he told ABC13 of Houston in response to the Texas Democratic Party's call for him to resign. "The terrorist attack on the Capitol, it was despicable."

January 7, 2021, tweet: Cruz tweeted to reject an accusation from Democratic Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez that his own actions had contributed to deaths at the Capitol. (Cruz had voted against certifying Joe Biden's victories in Arizona and Pennsylvania and had called for a pre-inauguration "emergency audit" of the presidential election results.) He wrote in his response tweet: "Leading a debate in the Senate on ensuring election integrity is doing our jobs, and it's in no way responsible for the despicable terrorists who attacked the Capitol yesterday."

January 8, 2021, tweet: Cruz tweeted a clip of his interview with Houston's ABC13, the one in which he denounced a despicable "terrorist attack" on the Capitol, and added in the tweet, "What happened at the Capitol was despicable and horrific. Each and every one of those terrorists need to be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law."

January 8, 2021, tweet: Cruz tweeted in response to a Capitol Police statement about the death of officer Brian Sicknick a day after the attack. . . . Cruz wrote that he was praying for Sicknick's family and added, "Yesterday's terrorist attack was a horrific assault on our democracy. Every terrorist needs to be fully prosecuted."

January 17, 2021, spokesperson comment: After The New Yorker magazine released footage of a Capitol rioter rummaging through lawmakers' papers in the Senate chamber and saying he believed "Cruz would want us to do this," a Cruz spokesperson commented to Houston's ABC13: "As Sen. Cruz has said repeatedly, the terrorist attack on the Capitol was reprehensible, and the criminals who carried out the attack should be fully prosecuted."

January 19, 2021, comment to media: Cruz told the Washington Examiner in response to the same footage: "I think it was a terrorist attack on the Capitol, and it was despicable, and anyone who committed acts of violence should be fully prosecuted and should go jail for a long time."

February 11, 2021, comment to media: During the impeachment trial for former President Donald Trump, Cruz told reporters, "Today's presentation was powerful and emotional, reliving a terrorist attack on our nation's capital, but there was very little said about how specific conduct of the president satisfies the legal standard."

February 11, 2021, comment on television: In a Fox interview, Cruz again described the Capitol assault as a "terrorist attack."

February 13, 2021, official statement: Cruz issued a written statement explaining his vote to acquit former Trump on an impeachment charge of inciting an insurrection. In the statement, Cruz described the Capitol riot as a terrorist attack and the people who perpetrated the attack as terrorists.
"As I've said repeatedly, what we saw on January 6 was a despicable terrorist attack on the United States Capitol and those who carried it out should be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law. Unfortunately, this impeachment trial did nothing to bring the domestic terrorists who committed this heinous attack to justice." . . .

February 13, 2021, comment: Cruz used "terrorist attack" once more to describe the assault, the Wall Street Journal reported.

February 23, 2021, remark at Senate committee: At a Senate committee hearing on the Capitol attack, Cruz thanked "heroic law enforcement officers who demonstrated extraordinary courage in fighting to repel the terrorist attack that unfolded on the Capitol on January 6th."

February 23, 2021, comments on radio show: In comments on Texas radio host Chad Hasty's show, which were previously noted Friday by the group the Republican Accountability Project (formerly known as Republican Voters Against Trump), Cruz said, "We faced a horrific terrorist attack on the US Capitol" and that "this was a pre-planned, very closely coordinated terrorist attack."

May 28, 2021, official statement: Cruz issued a written statement opposing the creation of a new Democratic-led commission to investigate January 6, saying he supported existing Senate committees in their efforts to look into what happened. But Cruz began the statement with his usual description of the riot: "The January 6 terrorist attack on the Capitol was a dark moment in our nation's history, and I fully support the ongoing law enforcement investigations into anyone involved."

June 16, 2021, remark at Senate committee: At a Senate committee hearing on oversight of the US Capitol Police, Cruz asked the inspector general for the Capitol Police, "In hindsight, on January 6, what operational steps should the Capitol Police and other law enforcement have taken to prevent the violent terrorist attack from successfully breaching the Capitol?"
The 18th mention:
January 25, 2021, Verdict with Ted Cruz podcast: "No one anticipated a terrorist attack on the United States Capitol."
And two days ago, the 19th time:
January 5, 2022, Senate Rules Committee oversight hearing: "We are approaching a solemn anniversary this week. And it is an anniversary of a violent terrorist attack on the Capitol, where we saw the men and women of law enforcement demonstrate incredible courage, incredible bravery, risk their lives for the Capitol."

So . . . "a terrorist attack", "a despicable act of terrorism", "a shocking assault", "reprehensible", a "heinous attack",  a "horrific assault", "a pre-planned, very closely coordinated terrorist attack", "these brazen acts of violence" were a "dark moment in our nation's history", committed by "domestic terrorists", "despicable terrorists", "violent criminals" and "each and every one of those terrorists" "should [be] vigorously prosecute[d]" "to the fullest extent of the law" and "go jail for a long time".

See? Just a "sloppy", "dumb", and inarticulate one-time slip of the tongue.

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