Ted Cruz clashes with Seth Rogen over Biden rejoining Paris climate deal

Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) late Wednesday engaged in a heated Twitter exchange with actor and comedian Seth Rogen after the GOP lawmaker criticized President Biden’s executive action to have the United States rejoin the Paris climate accord. 

“By rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, President Biden indicates he’s more interested in the views of the citizens of Paris than in the jobs of the citizens of Pittsburgh,” Cruz stated in a statement on Twitter.

Biden’s decision to reenter the deal fulfilled a pledge to reenter the environmental agreement after former President Trump withdrew the U.S. from the global pact.

“This agreement will do little to affect the climate and will harm the livelihoods of Americans,” Cruz tweeted. 

By rejoining the Paris Climate Agreement, President Biden indicates he’s more interested in the views of the citizens of Paris than in the jobs of the citizens of Pittsburgh. This agreement will do little to affect the climate and will harm the livelihoods of Americans.

— Senator Ted Cruz (@SenTedCruz) January 20, 2021

Rogen, a vocal critic of Trump and his supporters, responded to Cruz’s tweet, writing, “F— off you fascist.” 

Cruz then responded to Rogen’s comment in a later tweet, tagging Rogen and writing, “Charming, civil, educated response.”

“If you’re a rich, angry Hollywood celebrity, today’s Dems are the party for you,” Cruz added. “If you’re blue-collar, if you’re a union member, if you work in energy or manufacturing…not so much.”

Rogen then replied to this tweet, again calling the Texas senator a “fascist” and telling him, “Go encourage a white supremacist insurrection again you f—ing clown.” 

Cruz has been criticized by Republicans and Democrats alike for his role in challenging the 2020 presidential election results, which some argue helped contribute to the deadly Jan. 6 pro-Trump riot at the Capitol in protest of Congress’s certification of Biden’s win. 

In a separate tweet minutes later, Rogen wrote, “If you’re a white supremacist fascist who doesn’t find it offensive when someone calls your wife ugly, Ted Cruz is the exact motherf—er for you.”

In a reply to this tweet, Rogen then directly refuted Cruz’s tweet, with the actor pointing out that he belongs to “four unions.” 

Rogen’s tweet also referenced an incident during the 2016 GOP primary when Trump mocked Cruz’s wife, which eventually led Cruz to blast the then-GOP presidential front-runner.

Trump won the primary and Cruz has since become an ally of the former president. Cruz is now seen as one of several Senate Republicans who could run for president in 2024.

Trump had withdrawn the U.S. from the Paris climate agreement over claims that it unfairly impacted American workers and “disadvantages the United States to the exclusive benefit of other countries.”

However, Biden has vocalized his support for the agreement as a way to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and boost the U.S. economy that has been severely impacted by the coronavirus pandemic. 

Biden’s climate plan calls for the electric sector to reach carbon neutrality by 2035. That effort would be accompanied by a large investment in various clean energy technologies, which Biden has argued will create jobs and draw customers from around the world.