While his home state of Texas was in a state of crisis, Republican Senator Ted Cruz jetted off to Cancun with his family and friends

While more than 500,000 Texans were without power and millions more were under boil-water orders, Sen. Ted Cruz boarded a plane for sunny Mexico. Cruz, joined alongside his wife and their children, were spotted boarding their plane and leaving behind a freezing Texas during a deadly winter storm. The photographs taken of the family blew up on social media and news outlets, leaving citizens of Texas and politicians aghast as disaster completely unfolded.

“Texans’ anger with Ted Cruz right now could power an entire electrical grid,” said The Houston Chronicle in an editorial that called for the state’s junior senator to resign. “Seems like you could use a break and we could, too, from an ineffective politician who, even in crisis, puts his personal itinerary before the needs of Texans.”

The feelings only intensified following a statement released by Cruz claiming that he had flown to Cancun “to be a good dad” and to accompany his daughters and their friends. He included his plan to fly back that Thursday, disclosing the details of the original planned vacation. Cruz spent under 24 hours in the Mexican City before returning home, leaving behind his wife and their daughters.

Cruz has stumbled before during weather-related emergencies, making himself no stranger to controversies surrounding extreme weather events. When Hurricane Sandy punished the Northeast in 2012, Cruz vocally opposed a relief package to help those states rebuild, boosting it as a “Christmas tree” filled with unnecessary spending. But when Hurricane Harvey hit Texas in 2017, Cruz led the charge for an emergency spending bill to help his state, and faced questions from fellow lawmakers regarding the apparent double standard.

Texas in particular has been starving for resources from the federal government in the aftermath of the storms, which have caused severe damage to the state’s infrastructure and electrical grids. In his earlier statement, Cruz said him and his staff “are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happened in Texas.”