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Colin Allred Sure Picked a Cringeworthy Time to Release This Political Ad

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  July 09, 2024 7:30 PM

Texas was hit by Hurricane Beryl this week, and the contrast when it comes to the responses from Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) and Rep. Colin Allred (D-TX) certainly has been noticeable. Cruz is up for reelection in November and is facing a challenge from Allred.

Allred decided to use Monday as a day to release his ad referring to the senator as "all hat, no cattle," claiming "Texans need a Senator who will take action." He's also made it his pinned post. 

A subsequent post asking for donations involves a call to action when it comes to being "ready for s Senator who will put Texans first, not cynical partisan politics." 

Cruz, however, was "tak[ing] action," specifically on the hurricane facing the state. Not only does such an ad come out at not the best time, Cruz's actions on that day also upend Allred's claims and complaints. 

The senator's activities included visiting the Houston Emergency Operations Center, seeing the damage for himself, serving people at Gallery Furniture, speaking at a press conference with Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in Galveston, whom he also met with at the Galveston County Emergency Operations Center and announced his work to help secure a federal disaster declaration. Cruz also met with local Texans in Galveston. When it comes to Jamaica Beach, Cruz met with the police department and community leaders there as well. 

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Perhaps particularly telling when it comes to Allred's accusations of "partisan politics," is that both Cruz and Rep. Al Greene (D-TX) appeared at and spoke at a bipartisan press conference, as did Mayor John Whitmire, the Democratic mayor of Houston. Allred was not there, however. 

Since the storm hit, Cruz has posted and reposted dozens of times, with almost all of them having to do with Hurricane Beryl, including updates for Texans about the storm. Other posts included reacting to breaking news, such as the death of former Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-OK). 

Newsweek addressed some claims from Cruz's critics, in an article from Tuesday titled "Was Ted Cruz on Vacation During Hurricane Beryl? What Timeline Shows," and even they found their narratives to be bogus. As the article read, including from the very first paragraph:

The Lose Cruz super PAC has criticized Texas Senator Ted Cruz for vacationing in California in the days leading up to Hurricane Beryl's landfall in the Lone Star State, but the senator was in Texas when the storm hit Monday morning.

...

A spokesperson for Cruz's office told Newsweek that the senator returned to Texas on Saturday, well before Beryl's arrival. Since the storm hit, Cruz has shared several updates on his actions during Beryl.

The Republican senator has posted dozens of times regarding the storm, such as reposting information from the Texas Department of Transportation or the Texas Division of Emergency Management.

U.S. Representative Colin Allred, a Democrat vying for Cruz's Senate seat, shared several messages about hurricane safety before Beryl made landfall, as well as several posts after it hit, although not as many as Cruz.

Allred was in Washington, D.C., for House votes on Monday when the storm hit. Newsweek reached out to Allred's campaign and his office by email for comment.

Amid his hurricane messages, Allred also shared a campaign advertisement against Cruz on Monday, when the storm made landfall.

"When it comes to the border, Ted Cruz is all hat, no cattle. Texans need a Senator who will take action," Allred posted with the video, which is pinned to the top of his X page.

Allred's account ultimately posted an article from the Houston Chronicle on Tuesday morning offering prayers and urging Texans to "listen to local officials on information for cleanup and resources" and expressing hope they'll "rebuild and get through this together." It wasn't before he also shared his ad in Spanish, though. Other posts about the storm had been reposts from local authorities as well as accounts such as FEMA. 

Although he too has been posting and reposting about the hurricane, Allred has continue to weigh more into political matters over his political X account, by bringing up matters such as the Democratic Party's pet issue of abortion through another ad that attacks Cruz. and advertising an event he's part of in Travis County on July 14. 

This isn't the only area where Allred's actions have invited criticism. Darin Miller, who serves as Cruz's communications director, shared a post in response from April 20 addressing how  Allred had missed a vote on the End the Border Catastrophe Act.