TULSA, Okla. (AP) – A Washington Post editorial cartoon depicting Ted Cruz’s 5- and 7-year old daughters as monkeys is inappropriate, and the children of candidates should be off-limits in campaigns, Republican presidential hopeful Ted Cruz said Wednesday.
The cartoon, which criticized Cruz for using his children in a TV ad, depicted the candidate as an organ grinder dressed as Santa and his daughters as dancing monkeys. The newspaper pulled the cartoon Tuesday from its website, saying “it’s generally the policy of our editorial section to leave children out of it.”
Speaking to reporters in Tulsa, the U.S. senator from Texas said he generally has thick skin but was irritated after seeing the cartoon.
“Not much ticks me off, but making fun of my girls? That will do it,” Cruz said. “Don’t mess with my kids. Don’t mess with Marco’s kids. Don’t mess with Hillary’s kids. Don’t mess with anybody’s kids.”
He said he appreciated the newspaper pulling the cartoon. “That was the right thing to do,” he said.