'Pulled a Ted Cruz': Montana GOP governor torched for vacationing as his state faces historic flooding

Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte (R) reportedly returned to his state after deep speculation about his absence in the midst of historic flooding across the state. Since it has been confirmed that he vacationing in Italy, he is also facing deep scrutiny for doing so as Montana residents were faced with the challenges of unprecedented weather conditions.

Twitter users began sharing their reaction to Gianforte's actions shortly after Montana Press Secretary Brooke Stroyke released a statement to address the concerns about the governor's whereabouts. It appears to have only made things worse as Twitter users are now slamming the Republican governor and comparing him to Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) who fled his state to vacation in Cancun during the bitter winter storm of 2021.

"Montana’s Republican Governor Greg Gianforte pulls a Ted Cruz," tweeted NBC Universal senior executive, Mike Sington. "He’s out of state vacationing in Tuscany while Montana has been devastated with historic flooding. His office had previously refused to confirm where he was."

"The lessons of Ted Cruz's Cancun fiasco seemed painfully obvious," MSNBC producer Steve Benen also tweeted. "Evidently, Montana Gov. Greg Gianforte wasn't paying close enough attention."

"Gov. Gianforte was in Italy, his office confirms Friday morning," one Twitter user wrote. "The governor left Saturday for a personal trip to Italy and returned last night. He will be in Gardiner today for a tour and briefing."

In wake of Gianforte's actions, members of the Montana Democratic Party are also voicing their frustrations. On Wednesday, June 15, Sheila Hogan, the executive director for Montana's Democratic Party, sounded off with her concerns. According to The Hill, she also slammed the governor's office and accused his staff of "lying about his absence and 'purposefully obscuring the fact that the executive order was signed by his lieutenant governor.'”

“In a moment of unprecedented disaster and economic uncertainty, Gianforte purposefully kept Montanans in the dark about where he was, and who was actually in charge,” Hogan said. “Again, we ask, where in the world is Governor Gianforte?”