Ted Cruz’s explanation for suddenly jetting off to Cancun while his state of Texas is in the throes of a once-in-a-generation deep freeze somehow made things worse. “With school canceled for a week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends,” Cruz wrote in a statement posted to Twitter on Thursday after hours of radio silence. “Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon.” Photos appeared to show Cruz’s wife, Heidi, alongside him and his daughters, who are 13 and 10 years old, thus making it unclear why Cruz himself would need to go. Cruz also was carrying two bags with him. Millions of people in Texas are currently without power or water.

The Texas Democratic Party responded on Twitter: “Ted Cruz should be helping to feed Texans by supporting organizations like Feeding Texas. You can support @FeedingTexas efforts at: http://FlyinTedCruz.com.” “[I]s he ... blaming his daughters? yes, of course he is,” former NFL wide receiver and writer Donté Stallworth wrote. And Rep. Mondaire Jones (D-NY) wrote: “Cancún Cruz should’ve resigned after helping to incite the insurrection.”