Memes of a vacation-ready Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) littered the Senate locker room on Wednesday, teasing of the GOP lawmaker’s now infamous (albeit truncated) escape to Cancun after his state was walloped by a winter storm that left millions without power or running water, NBC News reported on Friday.
Two people familiar with the prank told NBC News that lockers in a gym used only by current and former senators had been plastered on Wednesday with printouts of a meme that featured a beach-ready Cruz dressed in a short-sleeve polo shirt, jeans and the Texas-flag mask he donned when he was spotted at the airport en route to his Mexican getaway last week.
It is not clear whether Cruz, who returned early from the trip and called it a “mistake,” saw the papered gym prank.
“Bienvenido de Nuevo, Ted!” was the taunting return message typed atop the color printouts, NBC News reported.
The meme featured a manipulated photo of Cruz dragging his luggage across an arctic landscape while holding a tropical cocktail garnished with a slice of fruit. The ridiculed senator is shown in the printout walking toward the now viral image of a masked Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-VT) sitting with arms and legs crossed that was taken at last month’s inauguration.
The memes were taken down sometime Wednesday, sources said.
