By Frank Yemi
Copyright inquisitr
Sen. Ted Cruz didn’t just join the meme war this week, he escalated it. On Wednesday, the Texas Republican posted a video slideshow featuring 44 Senate Democrats with digitally added sombreros and mustaches, threatening that the trolling would “continue until they re-open our government.”
“The 44 Senate Democrats who voted for Schumer’s Shutdown should know that the Sombrero posting will continue until they re-open our government,” Cruz wrote on social media, adding a cheeky “Hey, Macarena!”
The video showed each Democratic senator’s photo altered to include cartoonish Mexican stereotypes, all set to an AI-generated cover of “Macarena” sung in Donald Trump’s voice. “Kamala’s never gonna beat me in November, gonna make the country better than you can remember. Kamala’s never gonna beat me in November, hey Macarena!” the fake Trump vocals sang as the sombrero-filled slideshow rolled.
Cruz’s stunt was a clear nod to Trump’s recent viral memes that used similar edits. Days earlier, the former president shared videos of House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries wearing a sombrero and mustache while mariachi music played, alongside a deepfake audio clip of Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer mocking Democrats. Those videos were slammed by Democrats as racist and “disgraceful,” while Trump allies dismissed the criticism as humorless overreaction.
The timing of Cruz’s post was anything but random. The federal government is currently shut down, with both parties locked in a bitter standoff over funding. Republicans passed a short-term spending bill through November, but Democrats blocked it, insisting that it restore health-care provisions they view as essential. Negotiations have since devolved into a public blame game and, increasingly, a meme battle.
Cruz’s video fits neatly into that strategy among Republican supporters; the sombrero slideshow played like a bold taunt, portraying Democrats as responsible for the shutdown and ridiculing them in the process. Among Democrats, the reaction was furious. Many blasted the video as childish, racially insensitive, and tone-deaf at a moment when hundreds of thousands of federal workers face furloughs and critical services are at risk.
The Macarena twist added another layer of absurdity. By pairing AI-generated Trump vocals with exaggerated cultural imagery, Cruz managed to blend political trolling, pop culture, and racial provocation into one package tailor-made for viral engagement. Within hours, the clip spread across social media with over 2.4 million views on X, with conservatives cheering and liberals seething.
Democratic aides pointed out that many of the targeted senators represent states with large Latino populations, making the meme not only offensive but politically reckless. Others argued that Cruz’s antics show the GOP’s willingness to lean on culture-war humor rather than focus on actual budget negotiations.
Republicans, however, claimed the outrage proved their point. “They can’t take a joke,” one GOP strategist said, insisting that the “Schumer’s Shutdown” label would stick regardless of Democratic pushback.
Cruz gave no sign of backing down. His post ended with the promise that the sombrero edits would continue until Democrats give in. In a shutdown that should be centered on spending bills and policy debates, Washington has once again descended into meme warfare.
