Ted Cruz says ‘stop attacking pedophiles’ in embarrassing gaffe

https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/ted-cruz-attacking-pedophiles-gaffe-b2837203.html

471 points · 39 comments · view on lemmy.world

39 Comments

eatCasserole@lemmy.world · 139 pts · 335d (16 replies)

Some social media users have noted the irony in Cruz’s gaffe, as the politician voted against an amendment that would have forced the Justice Department to release the Epstein files.

Not a gaffe.

Shame on the independent, why are they running damage control for this bozo?

Showroom7561@lemmy.ca · 51 pts · 335d (8 replies)

as the politician voted against an amendment that would have forced the Justice Department to release the Epstein files.

When I see someone voting AGAINST releasing the Epstein files, I can only make the assumption that they are in it.

Seeing that we are talking about an already horrible person, it wouldn't surprise me at all if Cruz is trying to cover his ass.

UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world · 32 pts · 335d

When I see someone voting AGAINST releasing the Epstein files, I can only make the assumption that they are in it.

Cruz's career was largely post-Epstein. But a bunch of his allies and big-ticket donors have straight lines to the Birthday Book and the Flight Logs. He's got a vested interest in protecting them.

nymnympseudonym@piefed.social · 3 pts · 335d

Cruz is trying to cover his ass.

Great now I have the mental image of video taken by one of Epstein's Kompromat Cameras, of a room with a freshly raped teen and Grandpa Munster doing his best to hide behind a towel

iThinkDifferentThanU@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 335d (4 replies)
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UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world · 5 pts · 335d (3 replies)

Johnson cut it short

In the Senate?

iThinkDifferentThanU@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 335d (2 replies)
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dhork@lemmy.world · 8 pts · 335d (1 reply)

In the House, the Speaker normally controls the agenda, and nothing can be schedules without their approval. However, there is a process where if a member gathers the signatures of a majority of Members on an issue, the Speaker is forced to put it on the agenda.

Their petition to release the Epstein files currently has 217 out of the 218 signatures necessary, it has every sitting Democrat on board, and enough Republicans to bring it to the threshold. But there was a vacant seat, which a Democrat won recently. That Democrat is on the record as wanting to sign the petition.

Normally, these special election winners are sworn in right away, but Speaker Johnson adjourned the House before she could be sworn in. Adjourning the House looked particularly bad, because it all but guaranteed a shutdown.

Asafum@feddit.nl · 4 pts · 335d

Adjourning the House looked particularly bad, because it all but guaranteed a shutdown.

I don't think they're concerned about that. They rely on the fact that most voters won't know this and the Republicans can just run around saying "the Democrats forced us to shut down!" even though the Republicans were the ones who did it early and stopped any chance of continued negotiations.

Republicans revel in the lack of nuanced discussion. :(

prole@lemmy.blahaj.zone · 1 pts · 334d

In it, or are being blackmailed by someone who's in it.

SwampYankee@feddit.online · 14 pts · 335d (1 reply)

It's also not irony.

samus12345@sh.itjust.works · 2 pts · 334d

It's like rain on your wedding day.

JaymesRS@piefed.world · 10 pts · 335d (1 reply)

The gaff being saying it out loud in front of cameras…

Draces@lemmy.world · 4 pts · 335d

Yeah, I don't think people know what gaffe means. He can say something he believes and not mean to. That's still a gaffe

Edit: another valid definition was pointed out elsewhere. Guess it can or can't be based on which you pick

iThinkDifferentThanU@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 335d (2 replies)
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bitjunkie@lemmy.world · 6 pts · 335d (1 reply)

This post smells like toast

Tarquinn2049@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 335d

The worst part is it's only missing a comma, and maybe one or two more words to clarify, but they would be optional once the comma was in.

vegeta@lemmy.world · 74 pts · 335d (1 reply)

Cancunian Slip

crazycraw@crazypeople.online · 10 pts · 335d

cancuntian

Bonifratz@sh.itjust.works · 41 pts · 335d (3 replies)

grue@lemmy.world · 12 pts · 335d

Nope.

I remember when Qanon pretended to think that, though.

PseudoSpock@lemmy.dbzer0.com · 6 pts · 335d

The meme is an old one, but the code checks out.

AnUnusualRelic@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 335d

Was that so there would be more for himself?

Lexam@lemmy.world · 26 pts · 335d (5 replies)

Has he said it was a gaffe?

iThinkDifferentThanU@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 335d
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cabbage@piefed.social · 1 pts · 335d (3 replies)

a remark or action that is a social mistake and not considered polite

Isn't this pretty precise, according to Cambridge dictionary? It's outside my active vocabulary so what the hell do I know

lightnsfw@reddthat.com · 24 pts · 335d (2 replies)

I think their point is, did he correct himself later on to indicate that he misspoke?

baggins@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 335d (1 reply)

It was a social mistake, not nessicarily a mistake of speech or intent.

cabbage@piefed.social · 5 pts · 335d

Exactly this. If you try ticking a grizzly bear it's a mistake even if it is intentional.

But again, I'm not a native speaker so I'm not saying this is the correct interpretation of the word, but that's the impression I get from the dictionary.

PixeIOrange@lemmy.world · 13 pts · 334d

Fyrnyx@kbin.melroy.org · 13 pts · 335d (2 replies)
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icylobster@lemmy.world · 1 pts · 334d (1 reply)

The zodiac killer thing was a joke at first. It was focused on the odd way he would talk, comparing mannerisms with that if the zodiac killer.

I'm not aware of it ever being said. But I've noticed a lot of conspiracies seem to originate from a joke that others don't get.

Fyrnyx@kbin.melroy.org · 1 pts · 334d
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betterdeadthanreddit@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 335d

Ted gets one honest statement per fiscal year (shutdown or not) and this is what he burns it on.

Archangel1313@lemmy.ca · 11 pts · 335d

How was this a "gaffe"? He clearly meant it, although the context is a bit more nuanced than just, "Ted Cruz loves pedophiles". He's obviously trying to downplay their importance in the current political conversation, in an effort to get people to stop caring about Donald Trump's Epstein connections.

This wasn't a slip of the tongue. It's just an objectively bad take, and people should roast the shit out of him for it.

WanderWisley@lemmy.world · 11 pts · 334d (1 reply)

Very soon a portion of the country will be perfectly ok with openly defending pedophiles.

SereneSadie@lemmy.myserv.one · 5 pts · 334d

They've been fine with it since before November.

UnderpantsWeevil@lemmy.world · 10 pts · 335d

Hey hey hey, that's not what he meant to say. What he meant to say was "Stop attacking my mega-donors."

DrFistington@lemmy.world · 10 pts · 335d (1 reply)

Why are people assuming it was a gaffe?

hemmes@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 335d

Yeah - I’m struggling to figure out what he meant instead

Killer57@lemmy.ca · 10 pts · 334d

Fairly sure he was just saying the quiet part out loud again.

Hozerkiller@lemmy.ca · 6 pts · 335d

Rafael has honestly done more damage since he stopped being the zodiac killer than he ever did as the zodiac killer.

lemmyausmister@feddit.org · 5 pts · 335d

Don't boo him for being honest..

wirebeads@lemmy.ca · 5 pts · 335d (1 reply)

Death to pedophiles and at this point the monsters that help protect them.

wheezy@lemmy.ml · 3 pts · 335d

Fun fact. The monsters that help to protect them, also pedophiles.

Jaysyn@lemmy.world · 2 pts · 335d
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