Critics rip into Ted Cruz after he says lawmakers' concern over mass shootings are political theater

After a seven-day string of mass shootings that culminated with 10 people dying in a Colorado supermarket, U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz is tirelessly and tiresomely fanning the flames of outrage.

On Tuesday, the Texas Republican — who also happens to be among Washington's top recipients of NRA dollars — racked up a litany of Twitter spankings for claiming that lawmakers who want stricter gun laws in the wake of mass shootings are just engaging in political theater.

“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,” Cruz said during a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing. “What happens in this committee after every mass shooting is Democrats propose taking away guns from law-abiding citizens, because that’s their political objective.”

Further, Cruz tried to paint the other side's condemnation of the GOP's routine offer of "thoughts and prayers" platitudes every time there's a mass shooting as a mockery of faith. Because we all know what a turn-the-other cheek Christian he is.

"I don't apologize for thoughts or prayers," he proclaimed. "I will lift up in prayer people who are hurting, and I believe in the power of prayer, and the contempt of Democrats for prayers is an odd sociological thing." 

Critics wasted no time ripping into Cruz, suggesting that by saying "every time there's a shooting," he's kind of acknowledging that this country may just have a problem. Meanwhile, others pointed just how fat Cruz's campaign coffers are with NRA money and that the guy has a pretty selective sense of outrage.

Did you say “every time there’s a shooting”?!! Is that really how you want to start your defense of guns?!! You being so tone deaf and uttering “every time” says more about the subject matter than anything you said afterwards! @tedcruz @SenTedCruz is a national embarrassment! https://t.co/BcYePtPWkT

— Brian Fitzgerald (@TheThingRadio) March 23, 2021

After sixteen people were killed in a hot air balloon in Lockhart, Texas, Ted Cruz authored and passed federal legislation improving safety rules.

I guess that's not because laws don't work, but because there's no hot air balloon lobby funding his Senate seat. #txlege https://t.co/X4N8k24YnE

— Shannon Watts (@shannonrwatts) March 23, 2021

Ted Cruz spent a week outraged about Dr Seuss but shrugs off the murder of 10 innocent bystanders.

GOP priorities ...

— Mark Gray (@rich29uk) March 23, 2021

For those keeping score: Ted Cruz will defend: Insurrectionists, Assault Weapons, Canned GoodsTed Cruz will not defend or will throw under the bus: Democracy, His Wife, His kids https://t.co/UprgZIhFwr

— Emily Brandwin (@CIAspygirl) March 24, 2021

Perhaps we shouldn't be taking public safety advice from a senator who helped incite a deadly insurrection at the U.S. Capitol. https://t.co/iqmwvzDAog

— Robert Reich (@RBReich) March 23, 2021

Stay tuned, folks. Turns out Flyin' Ted's also planning a trip to the U.S.-Mexico border to get to the bottom of this whole immigration crisis you may have heard about.

It's a safe bet more inflammatory Cruz statements and pissed-off tweets are bound to follow. Because these days, feeding the outrage furnace sure seems to come easier for Texas' junior senator than doing his fucking job and actually governing.

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