Fox News discussed Houston flooding with Ted Cruz. They didn't ask why he voted against funding for Sandy victims.

Written by Media Matters Staff

Published

Fox reporter Caroline Shively failed to challenge Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) on his hypocritical calls for government assistance for victims of Hurricane Harvey after it made landfall in Texas on Friday night given that he voted against disaster relief funding for victims of Hurricane Sandy in 2013.

Cruz was one of the 36 Republican senators who voted against the Disaster Relief Appropriations Act of 2013, which appropriated federal assistance for those affected by Hurricane Sandy.

During his appearances on other networks, anchors questioned Cruz about his decision to vote against the disaster relief bill for Hurricane Sandy victims. CNN senior White House correspondent Jim Acosta, serving as guest host of Wolf, noted during a phone interview with Cruz: “There were some Republicans in Texas who were opposed to that funding [for Hurricane Sandy victims], and now many of those members of Congress would like to see help come in [for those affected by Hurricane Harvey] as quickly as possible. I know at that time you were one of those Republicans who were opposed to that emergency funding. What is your sense of it now? Is your perspective different now, now that you're seeing this happening in your home state?” Cruz responded that the Sandy package was problematic because it “became a $50 billion bill that was filled with pork and unrelated spending.”

MSNBC anchor Katy Tur also questioned Cruz, saying, “A lot of people are pointing out that you voted against aid for [Hurricane] Sandy after that catastrophic storm up in the Northeast, that package back in 2012. And they are pointing at you and saying you're asking for money now when you weren’t willing to help the people in the Northeast. What do you have to say to them?” Cruz responded, “There is time for political sniping later.” 

But during a broadcast of Fox News’ Outnumbered, Shively failed to ask Cruz about his vote against the bill that would have helped Sandy victims:

SEN. TED CRUZ (R-TX): Well, the past few days, the city of Houston, the entire Texas gulf coast, has just been reeling with the impact of this storm. And the storm is continuing -- we’re still having rainfall, we’re still having flooding. And I will say it has been very impressive seeing the different levels of government working together -- seeing local and state and federal government officials all coordinating. The number one priority is the preservation of life; it's search and rescue. Two days ago there was a real shortage of equipment for high water rescue, whether boats or helicopters or high-water trucks. I spent much of the day yesterday talking with various federal officials, state officials, talking with the governor, and we've seen substantially more assets deployed on the ground to engage in that high-water rescue.

CAROLINE SHIVELY: Is it enough? Is it enough? Is the federal government getting in there? Will more be coming?

CRUZ: Well, yes, more will be coming. So, in the past several days I have spoken with President Trump, I've spoken with the vice president, I've spoken with the secretary of homeland security, I've spoken with [Federal Emergency Management Agency], I've spoken with the secretary of [Department of Health and Human Services] and the governor multiple times, and what we are hearing consistently is a commitment to provide every resource needed. When I spoke with the president, he just said, “Ted, what do you need? What does the state need? The answer is yes.” Just a couple of days ago, the president had a cabinet meeting in which he instructed every cabinet agency, “Lean in, lean in, provide every service needed.” That’s very much appreciated. The governor is doing a tremendous job leading the state assets, and we are seeing real cooperation across the state dealing with this crisis.