Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) tried to rewrite the history of his 2013 government shutdown and was called out on it by MSNBC’s Kasie Hunt.
Video:
Here was the exchange:
To get more stories like this, subscribe to our newsletter The Daily.
Cruz: I have consistently opposed shutdowns. In 2013 I said we shouldn’t shut the government down. I went to the floor asking unanimous consent to reopen the government.
Hunt: Sir, you stood in the way of that.
Cruz: That’s factually incorrect.
Hunt: It’s not, though.
Cruz: It’s a wonderful media narrative. Only one thing actually cause as shutdown. When you have senators, who vote to deny cloture on a funding bill. And when that bill comes up, you have a vote. A yes means fund the government. A no means don’t fund the government. In 2013 virtually every single Republican voted to fund the government, including me multiple times, and virtually every — in fact, every single Democrat, I believe, in 2013, voted to shut the government down. The same thing is true here. Virtually every single Republican voted this week to fund the government. Virtually every single Democrat voted to shut it down.
Hunt: Sir, that’s simply not the case. This was about Obamacare funding.
Cruz: Those facts are incorrect.
Hunt: You insisted at that time —
Cruz: I get that you want to debate me, but you don't have any facts.
Kasie Hunt stood up for the facts as Ted Cruz tried to rewrite history
Hunt told viewers later that Cruz was technically correct about the procedure, but there was no question about how the shutdown happened as Cruz and his fellow Senate Republicans pushed to defund Obamacare.
Sen. Cruz was lying about a five-year-old government shutdown because he still wants to be president. Cruz is looking past Trump and toward his own future White House run.
It is important that reporters stand up for facts. When any elected official is standing before the American people and lying, it is the job of a journalist to make sure that the public has honest and accurate information.
Kasie Hunt did a great job making sure that Cruz didn't get an uncontested opportunity to mislead the American people. More journalists and reporters need to demonstrate the same commitment to truth that Hunt showed while talking to Cruz.
Jason is the managing editor. He is also a White House Press Pool and a Congressional correspondent for PoliticusUSA. Jason has a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. His graduate work focused on public policy, with a specialization in social reform movements.
Awards and Professional Memberships
Member of the Society of Professional Journalists and The American Political Science Association
