Ted Cruz might have regretted messing with Trevor Noah after the comedian obliterated him with a sharp joke about his Cancun scandal.
The Texas senator attacked the Daily Show host after Noah made some observations about a newly released US Census report.
“Now, aside from New York getting screwed, the big news out of the census is that America's population grew at the slowest rate since the 1930s,” Noah explained in the segment.
“Basically, immigration is down and the birth rate is falling, primarily due to this photo...”
A picture of Cruz was then displayed on the screen.
“I don't know exactly what that says, but I do know that the 1930s sucked for America,” Noah continued. “I mean there was the Great Depression, the Dust Bowl, everything was black and white, and if you wanted somewhere to sit, you needed to climb a half-built skyscraper. Yo, that was a s***ty time to be alive.”
He added that the new numbers mean New York will lose a congressional seat and Texas will gain two.
“This is really unfortunate for New York state because it means that one of its congressional districts disappears,” he said.
Cruz responded to his comments with a tweet, writing: “Trevor Noah whines that people are fleeing high-tax blue states and moving in droves to low-tax states like Texas, where the jobs are.”
Noah fired back with a reminder that Cruz recently caused national outrage after it emerged that he had left Texas for the popular holiday destination of Cancun, Mexico.
The trip took place in February, right as Texas was suffering mass power outages amid a deadly winter storm.
“Not sure I'd be using the words ‘fleeing’ and ‘Texas’ in the same sentence, Senator Cancun,” Noah said.
Cruz attempted to retaliate, tweeting: “I wear your scorn with pride. I remember when the Daily Show was funny.”
But Noah came back with another zinger, retorting: “And with that Ted Cruz has officially fought back harder against a tweet from a late night show than he ever did when Trump called his wife ugly.”
Noah’s fans and fellow Cruz critics were delighted by the exchange, with many suggesting Cruz was foolish to try and spar with a comedian.
“Watching Ted Cruz be triggered by Trevor Noah is something I didn't even know I wanted,” one person observed.
Another said: “Trevor Noah and Ted Cruz are exchanging insults. Or at least, Cruz is giving it a go.
“Current score: Noah 2:0 Cruz.”
