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Senator Ted Cruz
Photo: ERIN SCOTT / REUTERS
At least 37 people have died in the US state of Texas as a result of an unexpectedly severe onset of winter, and hundreds of thousands of people have been cut off from the electricity supply after severe storms.
In such a situation the local politicians could prove themselves as crisis managers.
Republican Senator Ted Cruz apparently had other plans.
According to reports from CNN, the AP news agency and Fox News, the top politician traveled to Cancun, Mexico, for a vacation.
Cruz himself initially did not comment on the trip, did not respond to numerous media inquiries.
His term as Senator expires in early 2025, but the Republican is being traded as a possible candidate for the 2024 presidential election.
Various photos had previously appeared on social media that Cruz and his family are said to show first at an airport and then on board a plane to the Mexican tourist city.
Minnesota Democratic MP Ilhan Omar criticized Cruz's behavior on Twitter.
"While millions of people in Texas lack electricity, heat, and food, Ted Cruz flies to Cancun," Omar wrote.
She was not alone in this reading.
Cruz had presented himself as a staunch supporter of Donald Trump in recent years.
After parts of the party distance themselves from Trump's legacy, Cruz's trip to Mexico is likely to cost him further sympathy.
US media suspect that he is on his way home in view of the devastating reactions.
The Texas Democrats have already called for his resignation.
Extreme cold and heavy snowfall had recently led to historically low temperatures in large parts of the USA.
In Texas alone, at times just over 4.4 million people were without electricity - the mostly electric heating failed in a number of houses and apartments.
Water pipes burst, and many people had to melt and boil snow in order to have drinking water.
The situation remained tense on Thursday, especially in Texas.
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fek / dpa / AP
