It’s nice of the Governor of Texas to blame everything other than what is actually at the root of the problem in Texas. This seems to be the Republican’s new “go to”: just engaging in outright lying. (That’s a tactic that the late Rush Limbaugh perfected early on.)
Texas Governor Greg Abbott went on Fox News and blamed renewable power (especially wind turbines) and the Green New Deal for the crisis with the Texas power grid. He did this even though:
- The Green New Deal has only been proposed. It hasn’t yet been enacted anywhere.
- Texas has an independent power grid not connected to the rest of the U.S. power grid, in order not to have to comply with federal regulations.
- Texas had a similar storm-related failure 10 years ago, and did not implement any of the recommendations that were made in its aftermath.
- Almost all parts of the Texas power grid failed for the simple reason that virtually none of the grid had been winterized.
It turns out, by the way, that wind turbines can work in very cold places, including all of the Nordic countries, Russia, and even Antarctica.
Antarctica?
Yes, Antarctica.
Finally, I should note that Senator Ted Cruz has gotten a lot of grief for escaping his state for a vacation to Cancun, Mexico, while the rest of his state was in a deep freeze. Cruz later explained that he was accompanying his two daughters had asked to go on a trip with friends.
Aside from the truly awful optics, and the fact that just about everyone (including conservative colleagues) hate Ted Cruz, I don’t think this matters. I understand why people want to have fun with this gigantic faux pas, but what Cruz did is not (in my opinion) on par with the abject mendacity of Gov. Abbott.
What does matter is that Beto O’Rourke was spending all his time raising money and helping people in his home state, and even AOC — hardly beloved in Texas — led a team that raised $1 million for Texas. Cruz returned home early with his tail between his legs.