A hidden camera video of Sen. Ted Cruz, R-Texas, from an airport in Bozeman, Montana, went viral on Tuesday — but critics say it’s fake news.
A report from an NBC senior executive claimed the footage shows Cruz confronting the airline staffers after he missed a flight and could not be rescheduled.
According to the claims, staff was later forced to call a police officer to calm down the longtime Texas senator.
Liberal commentator Keith Olbermann said Cruz “was apparently so out-of-control abusive to airline staff at the airport in Bozeman, Montana, that law enforcement had to get involved.”
That’s fake news, BizpacReview shot back. The conservative outlet described reports that an unruly Cruz was confronted by the police as “character assassinations” and dismissed the social media outrage.
You can see the NBC executive’s shared video (and editorializing) below —
Airport police are called to deal with Ted Cruz after he caused a ruckus at the Bozeman Montana airport when he missed the check-in window for his flight. A witness says he actually said, “Do you know who I am?”. No word yet on whether he was headed to Cancun. pic.twitter.com/43jBIVDR6N
— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) March 21, 2022
So what’s the truth?
Bozeman airport deputy director Scott Humphrey confirmed to The Daily Mail that Cruz was “frustrated” with the situation.
But, he added that the incident wasn’t unusual in any way. Passengers are often frustrated when they miss a flight; Cruz managed to rebook a later flight.
“One of our Public Safety Officers (PSO) was in the ticket lobby and was asked to assist with a frustrated passenger at the United ticket counter (which is not unusual),” Humphrey told The Daily Mail.
“The passenger had missed the check-in window for his flight and re-booking options were limited out of Bozeman due to Spring Break,” he said. “Once travel options were explained to the passenger, he was rebooked and departed Bozeman later that evening.”
“Our PSO didn’t realize he was dealing with Senator Cruz until after the fact,” Humphrey added.