Ted Cruz Visits Soldiers Injured in Maduro Raid, They Ask to Take Home Very Special Mementos
Sen. Ted Cruz visited wounded U.S. soldiers who were injured during Operation Absolute Resolve, the January 3 raid that captured Nicolás Maduro, and reported their request to keep the fragments that injured them; the visit included War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Sen. John Cornyn, and Cruz described the troops as heroes who understood the historic stakes of their mission.
Sen. Ted Cruz met with three servicemen recovering from injuries sustained during Operation Absolute Resolve. He was joined by War Secretary Pete Hegseth and Sen. John Cornyn for the visit, and he shared details on his podcast about the soldiers’ condition and morale. The men were described as in good spirits and focused on recovery, despite having faced serious wounds in the mission. Cruz emphasized the importance of recognizing their service to the country and the hemisphere.
The soldiers wanted to keep small, tangible reminders of how close they’d come to a worse outcome. Cruz recounted that one soldier asked specifically to have “the bullet that went into his leg.” Hegseth approved that request on the spot, allowing the serviceman to hold on to that piece of the event. For these troops, keeping the physical evidence mattered as a personal record of sacrifice and survival.
During a discussion with the soldier, Cruz said Hegseth extended an offer for anything the soldier needed.
“[The soldier] said, ‘Well, actually, there is something you could do,’ and Pete says ‘what?’” Cruz said. “[The soldier] says, ‘I’d really like the bullet,’ the bullet that went into his leg.”
A second soldier asked for his shrapnel as well, the piece of metal that had sliced his arm. Cruz described the arm injury as a long, deep gash caused by flying debris, and that the hospital required a waiver before releasing the fragment. Hegseth again signed off, and the men expected to keep these items as mementos tied to their Purple Hearts and the larger mission.
“He had the exact same request,” Cruz said. “He said, ‘I’d really like the shrapnel.’ They had the piece of metal that had cut his arm open, and again, the hospital said, ‘We have it, but we’re not allowed to give it to him without the waiver.'”
Hegseth also signed off on the second soldier’s request, according to Cruz.
“Both of those, I assume that they’re going to frame it or otherwise keep it as just a memento to the injury, the Purple Heart that they earned fighting for their country, but also being a part of profoundly impacting history,” Cruz said.
These requests capture how servicemen often treat battlefield artifacts as proof of service and survival. Cruz noted that the men are likely to display or frame those fragments as reminders of what they endured and why they fought. He framed their actions as consequential to the Western hemisphere and praised their role in changing history. The senator made a point to thank them on behalf of Texans and Americans.
One of the wounded was a Chinook pilot who kept going after being hit multiple times. Cruz referenced a prior report about that pilot finishing his mission despite being struck three times. The pilot’s grit and determination came up during the visit, and the mood sometimes turned to light banter even amid serious recovery. Cruz relayed a humorous exchange between the pilot and Hegseth that highlighted the crew’s resilient spirit.
“With all three of the soldiers, I took an opportunity to tell them, ‘Look, you were part of history. You were part of history in a way, without exaggeration, that changed the entire Western hemisphere. What you did was profoundly important … and I took the chance on behalf of Texans and Americans just to say, ’Thank you. Thank you for your bravery.'”
That same pilot joked about being ready to go again, prompting Cruz to ask when he could return to duty. The pilot answered with a quip that captured the troops’ blend of toughness and humor, asking to wait until Monday if possible. Cruz used that moment to illustrate the morale and fighting spirit he saw in each wounded serviceman during the visit.
“Hegseth asked him, ‘How are you feeling?’ And he said, ‘I’m ready to go again,'” Cruz said. “I said, ‘Great, can you do Saturday?’ And he said, ‘Well, can we hold off till Monday?’ So, that kind of gives you a sense of the spirit [the soldiers had].”
Beyond the hospital conversations, Cruz spoke with Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado during the same trip. Machado has been active in the opposition movement and recently made headlines for presenting her Nobel Prize to former President Trump. Cruz mentioned that meeting in the context of broader regional developments tied to the operation.
Cruz closed the visit by offering thanks and acknowledging the broader implications of the mission. He prayed a blessing on the troops and emphasized the renewal of warrior values in the armed forces under current leadership. The senator’s remarks were meant to honor the soldiers’ sacrifices and to spotlight their role in a mission that carried major geopolitical weight.
Watch the full conversation for more context on the visit and the men who took part in the raid.
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