Conservatives Blast ‘SNL’s Pete Davidson for Mocking Dan Crenshaw: “Totally Cheap, Disgusting, and Classless”

Pete Davidson may not be dating Ariana Grande anymore, but he’s still finding ways to stay in the news. On Saturday, Davidson stopped by Saturday Night Live‘s “Weekend Update” desk to discuss the midterm elections and the many “gross people running for office this year.” After poking fun at Florida governor Rick Scott and New York representative Peter King, Davidson took aim at Texas Republican Dan Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL who lost his eye in Afghanistan, saying that Crenshaw looks like “a hitman in a porno movie.” Almost immediately, conservative pundits, including Crenshaw, fired back at Davidson, calling his joke “offensive” and “classless” and demanding that NBC fire the SNL star.

“This guy’s kind of cool,” said Davidson as Crenshaw’s photo popped up on screen. “You may be surprised to hear that he’s a congressional candidate from Texas and not a hitman in a porno movie,” he said through laughs. “I’m sorry, I know he lost his eye in war, or whatever.”

Within hours, right-wing pundits piled on Davidson, SNL, and NBC for the “tone-deaf” comments. “Disgrace for SNL comedian Pete Davidson to mock GOP Dan Crenshaw for wearing an eye patch. As Navy Seal he lost eye in combat,” said Representative Peter King. “What are NBC’s standards for firing? PC to insult wounded vets?!? (Davidson also insulted me. Who cares?!),” he wrote. Judging by your increasingly erratic use of punctuation, it does seem a little like you care. Just saying.

Meghan McCain, always one to get in on the action, chimed in, saying that the bit was “really awful and incredibly tone-deaf and offensive.” Conservative comedian Tim Young echoed that statement. “Totally cheap, disgusting and classless of SNL to have Pete Davidson mock Dan Crenshaw for wearing an eyepatch,” he said. The National Republican Congressional Committee also released a statement on the subject that directly hit at the Davidson-Grande split. “Getting dumped by your pop star girlfriend is no excuse for lashing out at a decorated war hero who lost his eye serving our country,” it reads.

On Sunday afternoon, Crenshaw responded to Davidson’s comments, saying that though he tries “not to be offended,” he hopes SNL “realizes that vets don’t deserve to see their wounds used as punchlines for bad jokes.”

This morning, Crenshaw visited Fox & Friends to discuss his injury. He explained that while he has “thick skin,” he has “certain rules” for when people “poke fun” at him. “It has to be original, it has to be witty, and it has to be actually funny,” he said. “And this wasn’t funny.”

Watch Davidson’s entire “Weekend Update” segment above.

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