Ted Cruz blasts Biden's 'illegal vaccine mandate' after 1000s of flight cancellations

Ted Cruz slammed President Joe Biden after Southwest Airlines was forced to cancel thousands of flights over the weekend. "Joe Biden's illegal vaccine mandate at work!" He wrote, "Suddenly, we're short on pilots and air traffic controllers."

Southwest said that the cancellations were a result of air traffic control issues and "disruptive weather." As part of their travel advisory, they said they were working to "recover our operation."

Cruz has been outspoken against the vaccine mandates, saying in August that "The left doesn't believe in your privacy, it doesn't believe in your freedom."

Over 1,000 flights were cancelled on Sunday in addition to more than 800 cancellations on Saturday. Lines at airports were long, families were forced to sleep on airport floors, and no one was able to get anywhere.

Biden instituted vaccine mandates for all companies in the US that have more than 100 employees. Many airlines have complied. Speculation abounded over the weekend that the cancellations were not due to weather and "ATC issues," but were a result of pilots and air traffic controllers walking out in protest of the mandates.

United Airlines instituted their mandate shortly after Biden's August announcement. American Airlines also made plans to enforce the president's unilateral requirement, which has not been made law or approved by Congress.

In September, United announced that those who refused to get vaccinated would be fired. The White House has also not ruled out instituting a requirement that anyone who travels via air within the US must show proof of vaccination to board a plane.