Cruz Leads Charge Against Lynch, but Misses Vote

Today's vote in the Senate to make Loretta Lynch the next attorney general was 56-43. So who was the lone missing senator out of 100? Ted Cruz, which is generating some head scratches considering that he spoke for 10 minutes on the floor of the Senate prior to the vote pleading with his colleagues to reject her. It turns out that Cruz had to catch a flight back to Texas for a fundraiser before the final vote, reports the Dallas Morning News. His spokesperson is downplaying the move, noting that Cruz voted against the procedure for ending a filibuster that cleared the way for a final vote.

"He voted for cloture, that was the vote that mattered," says Rick Tyler. "He made the case against her, he voted against her in cloture, and he didn’t prevail." Still, the unusual combination of the presidential candidate blasting Lynch and then being the only senator to skip the vote is making headlines at Politico, BuzzFeed, the Washington Post, and elsewhere. As for Cruz's objection to Lynch, he says she "embraced the lawlessness" that marked the tenure of Eric Holder. (More Ted Cruz stories.)