Texas Senator Ted Cruz struck back Wednesday at Jimmy Kimmel after the ABC late-night host aired a skit that claimed Cruz was going straight to Hell.
Cruz took to Twitter to slam the lachrymose Kimmel for a five-minute slog of a skit featuring actor Billy Crystal as God talking about the display recently erected by a Satanic Church in an Illinois government building in Chicago.
Playing as God and mugging to the camera with a few oddly placed Jerry Lewisisms, the skit ended with “God” and “Satan” (played by Foo Foo Fighters frontman Dave Grohl) playing Rock, Paper, Scissors to see who would “get” Ted Cruz. God won, but said he would give Cruz to Satan because he didn’t want to see “that face” for eternity.
Senator Cruz hit back at Kimmel with a well-turned jab on Twitter.
“Really getting into the Christmas spirit, Jimmy Kimmel just aired a skit with ‘God & Satan’ arguing and eventually deciding that I should go to Hell,” Cruz tweeted. “It’s almost as if Jimmy’s feelings are still hurt that I kicked his ass at hoops.”
Cruz is, of course, talking about the charity hoops matchup that he and the late-night TV host played in June where Cruz beat Kimmel 11 to 9.
A segment on Jimmy Kimmel Live! sparked the game when the late-night host made fun of Cruz for appearing at a Rockets playoff game with a “super cool T-shirt over the polo look.”
That jab prompted Cruz to issue a challenge to Kimmel, demanding that they “settle this man-to-man” on the basketball court.
But that is not the only confrontation between the two. While Cruz has faced the rivalry with good cheer, Kimmel has been far more vitriolic and rancorous for his part. Kimmel has slapped Ted Cruz for making nice with Donald Trump after their pointed 2016 campaign rivalry, attacked Cruz as a pervert, and during the Senator’s recent re-election campaign, the comedian who is not a Texas voter campaigned for Cruz’ opponent, Democrat loser Beto O’Rourke.
Follow Warner Todd Huston on Twitter @warnerthuston.