Seth Rogen has criticised Ted Cruz for flying out of Texas in the midst of the state’s storm emergency.

Cruz, the US senator for Texas, accompanied his daughter on a flight to Cancun on Wednesday (February 17) as his state continued to grapple with a crisis that has left millions of people without access to clean water and many more without power.

Rogen, who has hit out at Cruz multiple times for his politics and other opinions, labelled the senator “a motherfucker” for abandoning his state in favour of shepherding his daughter on a holiday.

“I think @SenTedCruz is desperately trying to rebrand from the ‘inspired a deadly insurrection’ motherfucker to the ‘left my constituents to freeze to death so I could go to Cancun; motherfucker, but luckily he can be both. He’s just that big a motherfucker,” Rogen wrote on Twitter earlier this week (February 18).

I think @SenTedCruz is desperately trying to rebrand from the “inspired a deadly insurrection” motherfucker to the “left my constituents to freeze to death so I could go to Cancun” motherfucker, but luckily he can be both. He’s just that big a motherfucker.

— Seth Rogen (@Sethrogen) February 18, 2021

Cruz, meanwhile, has defended his actions by saying he accompanied his daughter on the flight “to be a good dad” and returned to Texas on the same day.

In a statement he wrote: “This has been an infuriating week for Texans. The greatest state in the greatest country in the world has been without power.

“Like millions of Texans, our family lost heat and power too.”

He continued: “With school cancelled for the week, our girls asked to take a trip with friends. Wanting to be a good dad, I flew down with them last night and am flying back this afternoon. My staff and I are in constant communication with state and local leaders to get to the bottom of what happed in Texas. We want our power back, our water on,  our homes warm.”

You can read the statement in full below:

New Statement from @tedcruz: pic.twitter.com/0WMni5O9R1

— Vaughn Hillyard (@VaughnHillyard) February 18, 2021

On Thursday (February 18) the former Republican presidential candidate admitted that the move was “a mistake”, telling reporters: “Whether the decision to go was tone deaf, look, it was obviously a mistake/ In hindsight, I wouldn’t have done it. I was trying to be a dad” [via The Independent].

The Texas weather crisis stems from Southwestern state’s energy grid being overwhelmed by a surge in demand for heat, as temperatures plummeted to 30-year lows of -18C earlier in the week.

Approximately 13million people – close to half of the state’s population – have faced some disruption of water services with hundreds of water systems left damaged by the freeze.

Kacey Musgraves also criticised Cruz for the move, launching pre-orders for a t-shirt emblazoned with the slogan: “Cruzin For A Bruzin”. Proceeds from the sale will go to local Texan charities.

In other news, earlier this month Cruz was mocked online after positing that the “bad guys” in the Avengers films and Watchmen are “rabid environmentalists”.