"If I'm elected POTUS, there'll be an empty seat for the over 50 million unborn children killed since Roe #Stand4Life," Ted Cruz tweeted. | AP Photo Cruz slams White House's plan to leave SOTU seat empty for gun victims

Ted Cruz responded to the White House’s announcement Friday that a seat in the first lady’s guest box for Tuesday’s State of the Union address will be left empty to honor victims of gun violence with a promise of his own.

“If I’m elected POTUS, there’ll be an empty seat for the over 50 million unborn children killed since Roe #Stand4Life,” the Texas senator and Republican presidential candidate tweeted Friday afternoon after the White House’s account tweeted the news.

Advertisement If I'm elected POTUS, there'll be an empty seat for the over 50 million unborn children killed since Roe #Stand4Life https://t.co/BgBy8yYKYd — Ted Cruz (@tedcruz) January 8, 2016

Obama’s announced executive action on guns from earlier this week drew strong criticism from Republicans, including Cruz, who features a fundraising appeal on his campaign website that says the president “wants your guns.”

Traditionally, the White House’s invited guests have signaled potential areas of emphasis for the president’s address. Among the invitees last year, for example, were students, medical professionals, a child of undocumented immigrants, a police officer and an Army veteran.