The father of Trevor Reed, the former US Marine who was recently released from detention in Russia, slammed Texas Senator Ted Cruz for not doing anything to help negotiate his release, Dallas Morning News reports.
“He didn’t do anything,” Joey Reed said. “He’s an embarrassment to the state of Texas, let me just say that. I don’t care what or who runs against him, I will work for their campaign to defeat that son of a bitch.”
Reed was arrested in Moscow in 2019 and sentenced to nine years in prison in July 2020 for endangering the “life and health” of Russian police officers during an altercation while he was drunk. He denied the allegations.
When Joey and Paula Reed reached out to Cruz’s office, they said a staffer told them that “because Senator Cruz is such an enemy of Putin, he’s afraid that if he says anything, it will hurt your son.”
Cruz told Dallas Morning News in a statement that he did not take a public stance on Trevor Reed’s captivity out of concern for antagonizing Vladimir Putin and delaying Reed’s release.
“We were repeatedly advised by Administration officials that my taking a public role in this specific case would be counterproductive, and that because of my role fighting to stop the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, leaders in Russia may well have linked the two issues,” Cruz said. “That would have endangered Trevor and delayed his release.”
The Reeds are not buying it. They said Texas Rep. Michael McCaul, the ranking member on the House Foreign Affairs Committee was a “giant, public voice for our son” despite being an outspoken critic of Putin and the Nord Stream 2 pipeline.
History and public policy professor at the University of Texas, Jeremi Suri told the outlet that it is not uncommon for the State Department to ask lawmakers to avoid saying things in public that could undermine ongoing negotiations behind the scenes. However, Suri noted that Cruz does not really follow recommendations from the executive branch especially from this White House. And he just might be overstating his role in US-Russia relations.
Reed was released in a prisoner swap last month after serving two and a half years in a Russian prison.
Cruz called the Reeds to congratulate them, but Joey Reed said he responded: “Where have you been for the last two and a half years?”
When Cruz asked if there’s anything he can do, Joey Reed said he told him, “we said we needed your help two and a half years ago, not now.”
