Texas Sen. Ted Cruz said the impact of Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass’s “devastating” policies has driven Spencer Pratt’s momentum in the mayoral race — even turning Democrats in the solidly blue city toward the former reality TV star.
“At the end of the day, you might be the most liberal person in the world,” Cruz told TMZ. “You might like 95% tax rates, but you may not want your kids being accosted, you may not want to have to step over human feces to walk to work. And at the end of the day, the policies of Karen Bass have failed.”
Cruz also cited the popularity of Pratt’s campaign videos as a reason for his recent surge.
“There’s a reason they’ve gone viral because they speak to a real truth, which is tragically the policies of Karen Bass have been devastating for Los Angeles,” he said, noting he thinks the videos are “awesome” and that he looks forward to them.
A clip he posted in April titled “They not like us,” which mocked Bass and LA City councilwoman Nithya Raman for their multimillion-dollar home, attracted millions of views across social.
His most recent video was a subtle defense of a TMZ report showing Pratt was living in a hotel in Bel Air, and not his Airstream trailer, where his home burned down in the Palisades.
“Now this is a story all about how my life got flipped, turned upside down,” he captioned the video, set to the Fresh Prince of Bel-Air theme music. The video shows the rubble of his former home, and blames Bass and other LA politicians for the Palisades fire.
Cruz also weighed in on whether an endorsement from President Donald Trump would help Pratt in the deep-blue city.
“I have no idea,” the senator said, later noting that crime and homelessness are not “left-right” issues.
A recent poll showed Bass in the lead with 35% support in the mayor’s race, with Raman and Pratt tied at 23%.