Looking to join the ranks of two other former members of the U.S. Navy SEAL Teams to infiltrate the halls of the U.S. Congress, Houston, Texas-based former Naval officer Daniel Crenshaw does not necessarily look the part of a staid, buttoned-down politician.  In fact, rarely ever do you see eyepatch-sporting, facial hair sprouting, necktie-less men cruising around the Capitol Building.

And yet, Crenshaw (pictured above, with eyepatch) is looking to be elected to the U.S. House of Representatives seat being vacated by the retirement of Republican congressman Ted Poe in Texas’ second district.  According to his campaign website, the former Navy SEAL Lieutenant Commander (O-4) is a sixth generation Texan, speaks fluent Spanish, and received his commission into the U.S. Navy via the Naval Reserve Officer Training Corps (NROTC) at Tufts University.

Crenshaw earned a Bachelor’s degree in International Relations and Affairs, as well as a minor in Physics, while at Tufts.  He was interviewed by the Tufts Daily back in 2006 before graduating and shipping off to SEAL training.  He told the college newspaper that he had wanted to be in the Navy “for a long time.”

Crenshaw went on to graduate from Basic Underwater Demolition/SEAL (BUD/S) training and was assigned to SEAL Team Three on the U.S. West Coast.  He made five overseas deployments as a SEAL, including to Iraq and Afghanistan.  In the latter, he lost his right eye in an IED explosion in Helmand Province.

Losing an eye did not stop Crenshaw from completing two more overseas deployments, however, although he was eventually medically retired from the Navy in 2016 after 10 years of service.  Crenshaw went on to complete his Master in Public Administration (MPA) at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government.

Crenshaw is running as a conservative Republican in a district where he grew up, where his family still lives, and where most his neighbors in 2016 voted for Donald Trump to be President.  Those same neighbors will almost assuredly vote for a Republican to replace the retiring Poe in the House seat.  On his website, Crenshaw vows that he can:

bring the integrity, leadership, vision, and tenacity learned in the SEAL teams to fight in Congress for common sense policies that ensure our nation’s prosperity and security, represent our Christian values, and again give Texans a reason to be proud of their leaders.”

According to the Houston Chronicle, Crenshaw faces formidable competition in the primaries from at least three other conservative Republicans looking to replace Poe.  Crenshaw looks to be burnishing his conservative credentials as he states on his website that he is “passionate about securing our border, lowering taxes, and promoting the ideas that founded our country.”  He also states he is looking to help build a stronger, more secure America.

If Crenshaw is elected, he will join Virginia congressman Scott Taylor as the only other former SEAL in Congress.  Former Montana congressman Ryan Zinke was tapped by the Trump administration to be the Secretary of the Interior.

Featured image courtesy of the Dan Crenshaw for U.S. Congress campaign.