On Saturday, animal-rights group People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) handed out free barbecued tofu outside of a restaurant in Columbus, TX, where Republican Senator Ted Cruz held a event for his re-election campaign to the United States Senate. Cruz used PETA’s demonstration as an opportunity to smear Democratic opponent Beto O’Rourke. “I’ve got to say, [PETA] summed up the entire election,” Cruz said. “If Texas elects a Democrat, they’re going to ban barbecue across the state.” Cruz took to Twitter to further comment on the incident. “@peta protested our town hall yesterday, handing out barbecued tofu,” Cruz tweeted. “We were glad to welcome them, but it illustrates the stakes [at] the election: if Beto wins, BBQ will be illegal!” Meanwhile, O’Rourke continued on his campaign trail, speaking about issues afflicting Texans, such as limited access to health care, education, and civil rights violations (including the threat of dismantling Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals—an Obama-era policy that protects migrant individuals who were brought to the United States illegally as minors from deportation). PETA’s event at the restaurant—officially called “Hey, Ted Cruz: Try Some Tofu”—was in response to a previous statement in which Cruz claimed that liberals in the Lone Star State want it “to be just like California, right down to tofu.”

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