Did Ted Cruz fly to Cancún during the Texas winter disaster?

Photos that circulated on Twitter Wednesday night are intended to show Texan Senator Ted Cruz on a flight to Cancun, Mexico, during the state’s historic disaster.

The images show a man with a striking resemblance to Cruz at an airport and on an airplane. Cruz’s office did not respond to a request for comment, but this story will be updated if it does. Other reporters said they also contacted, but received no response.

Some Twitter detectives claimed that they combined a mask, glasses, a ring, sneakers and headphones with previous posts on social media. A photo shows Cruz’s wife – who appeared on national television – beside him.

A detective cited clues from a photo that puts Cruz inside Houston International Airport, near the terminal, for a United flight to Cancun at 4:10 pm

Less than an hour later, the UA1020 left for Cancún and landed at 7:52 pm, flight records show online.

Still, others thought that the photos may have been taken out of context or from a previous trip. In fact, there is no smoking weapon and Cruz has yet to comment.

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Those who shared the photos include a state legislator from Cruz’s hometown of Houston, Houston.

“Guess which US senator from Texas flew to Cancun while the state was freezing and having to boil water,” said state deputy Gene Wu, D-Houston.

Keith Edwards, a Democratic operative who worked on Senator Jon Ossof’s campaign for Georgia, tweeted that people on the flight with Cruz confirmed to him the veracity of the photos in direct messages.

Nothing on Cruz’s most recent timeline on Twitter mentions travel. He shared resources for the storm, including information about a heating center in San Antonio and a request for South Texas residents to donate blood if they can.

Reports of Cruz’s alleged vacation spread quickly on social media, catapulted by the Texans’ frozen frustration. That after a power failure in the state forced millions in the state to spend days without sustained energy in sub-zero temperatures. If true, the trip would add even more insult to injuries for a battered state that is dealing with a historic disaster.

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