Ted Cruz just said he’s against gov’t shutdowns. Susan Collins’ reaction will make your day

During a discussion among Senators today, Susan Collins was told that her Republican colleague, Ted Cruz, “claimed to be consistently against government shutdowns.” The Maine Senator’s response is telling.

Senator Susan Collins was just told in a scrum that Ted Cruz claimed to be consistently against government shutdowns. She stood there, mouth literally agape, for several seconds before saying "you've rendered me speechless."

— Paul McLeod (@pdmcleod) January 22, 2018

While Ted Cruz enjoys his alternate reality, the truth tells a far different story. In 2013, Cruz effectively headlined the last government shutdown, going so far as to launch a 21-hour speech in which he read “Green Eggs and Ham” on the Senate floor. The government was ultimately shuttered for 16-days and was largely blamed – even by Republicans – on the Republican Party.

Cruz’s own party lambasted him for what they viewed as a doomed tactic that would only serve to benefit him personally by boosting his national image ahead of the 2016 election.

“He knew that. He knew it. He knew it,” former Senator Tom Coburn (R-OK) said. “It wasn’t about the shutdown. It wasn’t about the Affordable Care Act. It was about launching Ted Cruz.”

“What he did was stood up for Ted and threw the Republican Party under the bus,” Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC) has said.

While Cruz’s disingenuousness truly knows no bounds, his own colleagues are not so apt to play pretend and indulge his ridiculous fantasies.

Follow Brian Tyler Cohen on Facebook and Twitter.