Ted Cruz embarrasses himself with a strange shark photo

America

Tropical Storm Hillary has brought unprecedented rainfall, flooding and landslides to the US state of California. Several local rainfall records have been broken in the Los Angeles area, according to the National Weather Service.

Tropical Storm Hillary floods US state streets. Photo: AP/Mark J. Terrill

Roads in the area were flooded and turned into rivers, leaving many motorists stranded. A shark has reportedly swum through flooded highways in Los Angeles, California.

“Holy crap,” writes Texas Senator Ted Cruz, sharing a highway shark photo on X. Twitter – with consequences.

Ted Cruz Shares Fake Shark Photo

The image shows a shark swimming through a flooded street. “A friend of mine in LA took this picture on the 405. Yes, all news and media outlets have permission to use this picture,” writes Big Cat.

Problem: The photo isn’t real.

Countless X users watch this, catching Cruz’s attention Hoax-watching site Snopes. Accordingly, shark imagery has already spread in numerous natural disasters in the past.

As “Snobes” also points out, the image was first circulated in connection with the 2011 hurricane in Puerto Rico. But in the end the photo was fake.

Because: According to the platform, the shark is taken from a 2005 film that shows a kayaker and a shark. The big fish was then cut into the flooded street.

Republicans take it in stride

Cruise takes his “misdirection” with humor: “I said it was a joke,” he commented on his post. “You don’t know in Los Angeles…” he called out to everyone People Survive the storm.

Cruz jokingly countered another post by an X user.

“If you’ve never been fooled by a shark swimming through the streets during a storm, throw the first stone,” referring to Cruz’s mistake. “Sharks have feelings too,” replies the Republican.

(with material from AFP)