A clip of Texas Senator Ted Cruz claiming that every week “almost without exception” people on flights hug and thank him for speaking out against vaccine mandates has gone viral.
The clip, posted on Twitter by The Reccount, was recorded while Cruz was speaking to the media following a meeting with leaders of the “People’s Convoy” and fellow GOP Senator Ron Johnson.
The meeting between the two lawmakers and the group of truckers was arranged as hundreds of vehicles drive loops around the Capital Beltway outside Washington D.C. as part of their vague protest about COVID-19 restrictions and the extension of the COVID national emergency.
While discussing the meeting, which was promoted as being about the “harmful effects of President Biden’s vaccine mandates,” Cruz told a story about how people on planes thank him for attempting to stop the restrictions and rules targeting federal employees and large businesses.
“Every week, I fly back and forth to Houston. Almost without exception every time I’m on an airplane, either the captain or a flight attendant will come up to me, will hug me and say thank you for fighting for us,” Cruz said.
“Because I’ll tell you United Airlines—sadly Houston’s a hub of them—has fired thousands of pilots and flight attendants. What difference does it make? We’re in the District of Columbia, right now that are mandates affecting kids in D.C. This is wrong,” Cruz added.
The clip has been viewed more than 1.9 million times since it was posted on Twitter on Tuesday.
Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) during meeting with D.C. trucker convoy:
“Almost without exception, every time I’m on an airplane, either the captain or a flight attendant will come up to me, will hug me and say, ‘Thank you for fighting for us.’” pic.twitter.com/27eoBrBlMb
— The Recount (@therecount) March 8, 2022
A number of people disputed Cruz’s claims about people hugging him on flights as the clip was being widely shared on social media.
Others also noted that Cruz widely…
