Dan Crenshaw

About

Daniel Reed Crenshaw (born March 14, 1984) is an American politician and former United States Navy SEAL officer serving as the U.S. Representative for Texas's 2nd congressional district since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was elected in the 2018 midterms.

Early Life and Education

Born to American parents in Aberdeen, Scotland, Crenshaw grew up in Katy, Texas. His mother died of cancer when he was ten years old. While his father worked in the oil industry, Crenshaw spent some time growing up in Ecuador and Colombia, gaining a proficiency in Spanish. Crenshaw graduated from Colegio Nueva Granada high school in Bogota, Colombia in June 2002.

Crenshaw graduated from Tufts University in 2006. He earned a Master of Public Administration from Harvard University's Kennedy School of Government in September 2017 and worked as a military legislative assistant for Congressman Pete Sessions.

Military Service

While at Tufts, he joined the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps and was commissioned in the U.S. Navy after his graduation.He served in the Navy SEALs for ten years, including five tours of duty, reaching the rank of lieutenant commander. His first deployment was Fallujah, Iraq, where he joined SEAL Team Three. He was based out of Naval Amphibious Base Coronado in Coronado, California.

While serving in the Helmand Province of Afghanistan in 2012, during his third deployment, he was injured by the detonation of an improvised explosive device; he lost his right eye and required surgery to save the vision in his left eye. After the injury, he was deployed to his fourth and fifth tours of duty in Bahrain and South Korea. As a Navy SEAL, he earned two Bronze Star Medals, the Purple Heart, and the Navy and Marine Corps Commendation Medal with valor. He medically retired from military service in 2016 as a Lieutenant Commander.

US House of Representative

2018 special election

In the 2018 elections, Crenshaw ran for the United States House of Representatives in Texas's 2nd congressional district to succeed the retiring Ted Poe. He announced his candidacy for Congress in November 2017. Crenshaw credited national security analyst John Noonan for encouraging him to run for Congress. During an interview in February 2018, he stated that border security and immigration reform would be two of his primary issues. On November 6, Crenshaw was elected, defeating Democrat Todd Litton by seven percent 52.84% to 45.56%.

Rise to Fame

Controversy

On the November 3 episode of Saturday Night Live, comedian Pete Davidson joked about Republican candidates' appearances, and described Crenshaw as looking like a "hit man in a porno movie" while adding that he lost his eye in "war or whatever." The joke received significant criticism, and on the following episode, Davidson and Crenshaw appeared on air together. Davidson offered an apology, which Crenshaw accepted.

Relatable Memes

Because Dan Crenshaw looks like Snake from Metal Gear, many people have referred to him as real life snake.