Texas Senator Ted Cruz is facing criticism and ridicule for undertaking a trip to Cancun, Mexico, as his constituents suffered a winter storm disaster.
But Cruz is also criticized and ridiculed for two things he did not actually say.
A fake tweet
A screenshot that is currently shared on social media claims it’s a Cruz tweet from September 8, 2016. The screenshot was made as if Cruz tweeted, “I would believe in climate change if Texas freezes.”
Legendary entertainer Bette Midler, who has more than two million Twitter followers, tweeted a meme showing Cruz’s face surrounded by these words.
Facts first: The alleged Twitter screenshot is a joke. Cruz never tweeted, “I will believe in climate change when Texas is over.”
“This is false,” Cruz communications adviser Steve Guest said in an email.
You do not have to accept Guest’s word for it. There is no sign of such a Cruz tweet on Twitter, not even in his own feed or in others’ answers to Cruz in 2016. Google also shows no indication that Cruz has ever tweeted anything like that.
Cruz, a longtime Republican camped the U.S. oil and gas industry, has made truly controversial statements about climate science, some of which are inaccurate. But it is clear that he did not make this statement.
A fake fundraising email
The fake tweet is not the only crazy Cruz-related content spreading on social media.
There is also an alleged fundraising application that makes it appear as if Cruz was trying to donate people to him by blaming the “liberal cancellation culture” for forcing him to shorten his trip to Mexico.
The Occupy Democrats account on Instagram, which has 354,000 followers, posted a picture of the alleged fundraising message, saying, “You can’t make it up.”
Facts first: You can make it up. Cruz has never filed such a fundraising appeal.
The Occupy Democrats account deleted his Instagram post after CNN and others pointed out it was inaccurate.
One sign that the alleged Cruz fundraising message is false: some versions of the screenshot say bottom right, in a light gray color and a small letter, ‘This is fake’.