Sen. Ted Cruz (R-TX) fired back at former House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) for calling him a “jerk” during a recent interview, saying he wears Boehner’s “drunken, bloviated scorn” with pride.
“The Swamp is unhappy,” Cruz tweeted. “I wear with pride his drunken, bloviated scorn. Please don’t cry.”
The Swamp is unhappy.
I wear with pride his drunken, bloviated scorn.
Please don’t cry. https://t.co/c90Ve2EOGq
— Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) April 9, 2021
Cruz’s comment came in response to a preview of Boehner’s Sunday interview with “CBS Sunday Morning,” during which he excoriated some of the more outspoken Republican members of Congress.
Lashing out at Rep. Jim Jordan (R-OH), Boehner confirmed that he believes him to be a “political terrorist,” saying, “I just never saw a guy who spent more time tearing things apart and never building anything, never putting anything together.”
Pivoting to Cruz, Boehner said, “I don’t beat anybody up — it’s not really my style, except for that jerk. Perfect symbol, you know, of getting elected, making a lot of noise, draw a lot of attention to yourself, raise a lot of money, which means you’re gonna go make more noise, raise more money — it’s really unfortunate.”
According to Axios, Boehner reportedly also let loose against Cruz in February while recording the audiobook version of his new memoir “On The House: A Washington Memoir,” which is slated for release next week. In one outtake, Boehner reportedly said, “Oh, and Ted Cruz, go f**k yourself.” The book will regale readers with “colorful tales from the halls of power, the smoke-filled rooms around the halls of power and his fabled tour bus.”
“I can confirm there were some off-script moments during his recording of the audiobook,” Boehner spokesman David Schnittger told Axios. “He pretty much just let it fly, as he did when he was working on the book itself. He’s not really interested in being anything other than himself these days. That is kind of the spirit of the entire project.”
“You know yesterday, John Boehner made some news,” Cruz said to the Conservative Political Action Conference in response to his alleged comment. “He suggested that I do something that is anatomically impossible. To which my response was: Who’s John Boehner?”
Boehner suggested during a recent tweet that he was under the influence of alcohol during the recording. “Poured myself a glass of something nice to read my audiobook,” he wrote. “You can blame the wine for the expletives.”
Poured myself a glass of something nice to read my audiobook. You can blame the wine for the expletives. #OnTheHouse #13Apr2021 pic.twitter.com/5uN709ipOs
— John Boehner (@SpeakerBoehner) February 25, 2021
Cruz and Boehner have clashed in the past. In 2016, Boehner told a crowd at Stanford University that Cruz was “Lucifer in the flesh,” adding, “I have never worked with a more miserable son of a b— in my life.”
As NBC News reported at the time:
Cruz was a significant influence among House members in the dissent that made the former speaker choose to step aside in 2015. Boehner’s choice was his own, but Cruz’s sway with conservatives helped make Boehner’s path impossible.
Related: Boehner Calls Cruz ‘Lucifer In The Flesh,’ Gives Best Reason Ever To Vote For Cruz