Retired Navy SEAL Dan Crenshaw, whose eyepatch was mocked this past week on "Saturday Night Live," on Monday told CNN he isn’t demanding an apology but would like to see NBC help veterans’ groups.
Six years ago in Afghanistan’s deadly Helmand province, Crenshaw encountered an improvised explosive device that caused him to lose his right eye and severely damage his left. SNL’s Pete Davidson made light of this by joking Crenshaw, a Republican congressional candidate in Texas, looked like a "hitman in a porno." The candidate told CNN's Alisyn Camerota that NBC should have "rethought" the gag.
"We have thick skin, but as veterans, it's hard for us to understand why war wounds would elicit such raucous laughter from an audience. So I think they should have rethought that joke a little bit, if you can even call it a joke," he said.
Camerota asked what Crenshaw thinks Davidson should do, pointing out that the Navy SEAL could "crush Pete Davidson like a grape." Crenshaw said SNL’s response should be more considered than a "hollow apology."
You know, everybody is asking that: ‘do you demand an apology from this man?’ I do not demand an apology. He probably should apologize, but I don't want some hollow apology. I think he has exposed himself for who he really is; I wish him well. I think what him and maybe the producers at SNL should do is pool their money together. Let's throw a figure out there, a million dollars, and we will donate that to a series of veterans nonprofits that help veterans.
This echoes what Crenshaw tweeted after the skit made the news, downplaying the personal offense he took at the joke.
Good rule in life: I try hard not to offend; I try harder not to be offended. That being said, I hope @nbcsnl recognizes that vets don’t deserve to see their wounds used as punchlines for bad jokes.
— Dan Crenshaw (@DanCrenshawTX) November 4, 2018
He suggested the Navy SEAL Foundation, Wounded Warriors, and Folds of Honor as potential organizations NBC could support. Crenshaw added that there are many ways to help veterans who aren’t happy being mocked on TV.
"There's a lot of great organizations out there, a lot of veterans that really need help. And frankly, this kind of thing is offensive to them. They feel laughed at," Crenshaw said.