Blue Texas: The Cold Front

In a bold move showing off his strength and resilience, Texas senator Ted Cruz abandoned his state, responsibilities and any ounce of respect he may have deserved last week. While his state suffered from the largest natural disaster in its history, Ted Cruz took a quick trip to Cancún, Mexico, with his family.

Last week, the entire country was hit by a record low cold front that rewrote at least 150 new records, ranging from ‘new coldest temperatures ever seen’ to ‘most counties without power.’ Texas had record lows going down to 13 degrees. While that doesn’t sound too bad compared to our -20, the Texas power infrastructure was not equipped to handle anything near this arctic front.

The Texan government privatized the power system back in 1999, as it was seen as an unnecessary expense to the government that could instead be used to stimulate the economy. The power company ERCOT took a majority of control throughout the state and has maintained a rocky relationship with the population ever since. Because of ERCOT’s lack of preparation and lack of common sense, power outages blew up throughout the state faster than a Texan can say “y’all.”

Leaving for Cancún was one of the worst moves Cruz could have made. This arctic front was absolutely wretched, but it wasn’t unforeseen. The state has had a history of arctic fronts happening pretty regularly for the last 40 years. While this was harsh, it wasn’t unexpected. So why wasn’t the state government prepared or able to care for its citizens?

While Cruz was caught fleeing the country and his responsibilities, Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez raised close to $4 million in disaster relief for the citizens of Texas. Cruz has made a series of interesting attempts to get out of the limelight. At one press conference, he blamed his daughter for the trip, saying it was her idea to leave for the power outage. At another point, he blamed former President Trump for the media's response to his trip, saying, “Where they’ve attacked Trump every day for four years, they don’t know what to do so they obsess over my taking my girls to the beach.”

This blunder by the GOP in the South may have been the opening that the Democratic party was looking for. Justified anger at this betrayal and appreciation for the aid given by AOC may be an indicator that Texas could flip blue in the foreseeable future. If something like this happens again, Texas may turn blue and not from the cold. Thousands of families were left without power for days, and 80 people have died so far. This failure wasn’t just a “mistake and misunderstanding.” The anger is justified and justice will be coming quickly.

Alexander Nesmith is a junior

communication major from

Calhoun, Ga.