Crenshaw reaches out to Pete Davidson after troubling Instagram post

Rep.-elect Dan Crenshaw (R-Texas) says he called Pete Davidson after the “Saturday Night Live” star posted a troubling message on Instagram, telling the comedian his life has “value.”

Davidson wrote in a since-deleted post on Instagram last week, “I don’t want to be on this earth anymore.” The 25-year-old comic has opened up before about his mental health struggles, including his battle with borderline personality disorder.

“It was pretty devastating,” Crenshaw said of the post in a Monday interview with Houston’s KPRC.

{mosads}“You know you don’t want to see somebody in that kind of position to the point where they’re actually putting out a cry for help on social media. That’s not a good place to be in,” Crenshaw told host Khambrel Marshall.

Responding to what appeared to be a call for help from comedian Pete Davidson, @DanCrenshawTX with me for #HouNewsmakers EXTRA talks about his response and phone call. https://t.co/BRiFwhBjD8 pic.twitter.com/GpqlUCPXpw

— Khambrel Marshall (@KPRC2Khambrel) December 17, 2018

Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL, was mocked last month by Davidson on “SNL” for the eye patch he wears due to an injury sustained in combat.

Davidson and “SNL” faced widespread backlash for the joke, in which Crenshaw’s look was likened to a “hit-man in a porno movie.” Davidson later apologized for the joke, and Crenshaw made a surprise guest appearance on the late-night sketch comedy series by his side, returning the ribbing in kind.

“This is Pete Davidson. He looks like if the meth from ‘Breaking Bad’ was a person,” he said.

Crenshaw, 34, said he talked to Davidson a day after the Instagram post, revealing he told the entertainer, “Everybody has a purpose in this world. God put you here for a reason. But it’s your job to find that purpose.”

“Know that you have value and you can do more good than you realize for people,” Crenshaw said he added.

“Especially a guy like that, he makes people laugh,” the Texas Republican said before adding with a chuckle, “Sometimes makes people mad. But he makes people laugh a lot and that’s what we talked about. It was a good conversation.”

“We don’t go back very far,” Crenshaw said. “We’re not good friends, but I think he appreciated hearing from me.”