(No, it is a mistake to try to pass off Jan. 6th as "legitimate political discourse" as some republicans are trying to do.)

Sen. Ted Cruz on Wednesday criticized his Republican colleagues who have called the January 6, 2021, Capitol riot an "insurrection," a day after Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell described the attack as a "violent insurrection."

"I think it is a mistake for Republicans to repeat the political propaganda of Democrats and the corporate media," the Texas Republican told CNN's Ted Barrett.

The senator also pushed back on the phrase "armed insurrection" being used by Republican leadership to describe the attack, CBS News' Scott MacFarlane said.

In the aftermath of the Capitol riot, Cruz condemned the violence as a "terrorist attack" and repeatedly used that language to describe the day's events.