People Were Outraged Over Pete Davidson Making Fun Of A GOP Candidate Who Lost An Eye In Combat

Before giving an uncharacteristically mature statement on his breakup with Ariana Grande during Weekend Update on Saturday Night Live over the weekend, Pete Davidson poked some fun at some candidates running in the midterm elections. And by “poke some fun” we mean he said Gov. Rick Scott running for reelection in Florida looks like “someone tried to whittle Bruce Willis out of a penis” and that Mike’s Pence’s brother Greg Pence was running as a “faith-based conservative and not a Ken doll that spent a year in a river.”

Cheap shots? For sure, but funny nonetheless. People weren’t laughing, however, when he got around to Navy SEAL veteran Dan Crenshaw, who is running for Texas second Congressional District. Crenshaw lost his eye in the line of duty and as a result, wears and eye-patch.

“This guy’s kinda cool, Dan Crenshaw,” Davidson joked, breaking out into laughter. “You may be surprised to hear he’s a congressional candidate from Texas, and not a hit man in a porno movie,” he continued before adding, “I’m sorry I know he lost his eye in war, or whatever.”

Now, you can’t make the argument that Davidson himself doesn’t understand sacrifice, since his father was a New York City firefighter who died in service on 9/11, after all. That said, making fun of a United States military veteran’s war injuries are about as off limits as it gets.

Crenshaw tweeted about the joke on Sunday, offering a measured response:

“I want us to get away from this culture where we demand apologies every time someone misspeaks,” he likewise told TMZ, adding that he doesn’t think veterans injuries should be the punchline of jokes and that it was mean spirited and unfunny.

Yet, that didn’t quell the outrage machine as many conservatives and liberals alike took to Twitter to lash out:

On the other hand, others pointed out that while the joke was in poor taste, conservatives should check their outrage, especially when you consider who they elected to be president.

https://twitter.com/ParkerMolloy/status/1059163400847179776

https://twitter.com/butchcjg/status/1059143271446913024

Davidson has yet to comment on the backlash, so it remains to be seen whether or not he’ll eventually give in and issue an apology.