Alex Stein, whose recent controversial exchanges with lawmakers includes calling Democratic Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York a “big booty Latina,” first confronted Crenshaw outside the U.S. Capitol on Tuesday.
In a video he posted on Twitter, Stein can be heard calling Crenshaw, who lost his right eye while serving as a Navy SEAL in Afghanistan, “eyepatch McCain.” He then added, “You lost your eye for weapons of mass destruction that didn’t exist.”
The social media personality was referencing the pre-war claims that Iraq’s then-leader Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction, which later proved to likely be false. However, Crenshaw later pointed out to Stein on Twitter that he did not serve in Iraq, but in Afghanistan.
“Imagine being a grown man and acting this way. Imagine your whole life is about begging twitter trolls for clicks. This piece of garbage insults every veteran that served in Iraq, and worse, insults the memories of those we lost. (Lost my eye in Afghanistan, btw, not Iraq. Moron),” Crenshaw tweeted Tuesday night.
Stein approached Crenshaw again on Wednesday outside the U.S. Capitol, and he also shared that lengthier exchange on Twitter.
The congressman was again badgered by Stein, who called Crenshaw a “little loser” and a “sad little boy” before criticizing him for approving federal aid to be sent to Ukraine.
For his part, Crenshaw told Stein to “get a job” and attempted to grab his phone.
At one point during the altercation, Crenshaw approached a group of men who appeared to be military veterans. He said to them of Stein, “This is the guy that tells veterans their service was wasted.”
Stein then brought up again how weapons of mass destruction were not found in Iraq and said he was anti-war.
“You’re looking like a fool right now…You’re disgusting,” Crenshaw said. “You’re the modern-day version of people who would spit on Vietnam veterans.”
Stein continued, “You don’t care about America at all, Dan. You’re a globalist, you’re a traitor, you’re a dwarf.”
“You’re a piece of s**t,” Crenshaw said at the end of their exchange.
Stein’s video continued, though, as he recorded Capitol Police officers approaching him and telling him he was not permitted to physically stop members of Congress from doing their jobs.
Crenshaw also responded to Stein’s Wednesday heckling.
“Well, America, this is what happens when our culture degrades boys and doesn’t teach them to be men,” Crenshaw wrote on Twitter. “They end up like Alex Stein, a shameless, pathetic provocateur that is so desperate for clicks he will shame a group of veterans for their service.”
Newsweek reached out to Crenshaw and Stein for comment.
