Captain America met Congressman America this week on Capitol Hill, as actor Chris Evans, who plays the red, white and blue hero in the movies, met with House Rep. Dan Crenshaw on Friday. Crenshaw had a surprise for Evans. The Texas congressman, who lost an eye during combat service in Afghanistan, showed off a glass eye with the famous Captain America logo. He memorialized the moment later in a tweet. “When Captain America sees your Captain America glass eye.” Crenshaw is a first-term congressman, but became nationally known after being mocked by comedian Pete Davidson last year on Saturday Night Live’s Weekend Update segment. In a bit taking down figures in the news, Davidson said Crenshaw looked like “a hit man in a porno movie.” The resulting outrage from groups supporting the former Navy Seal was intense. A week later, Crenshaw appeared on SNL with a chastened Davidson, who apologized. Crenshaw then got a bit of good-natured revenge by joking about Davidson’s prior relationship with pop star Ariana Grande and noting that the comedian “looks like if the meth from Breaking Bad were a person.” Here’s the Captain America moment with Evans:<doc-sep>Actor Chris Evans has been hanging around Capitol Hill for a mystery project — but one photo tweeted by Republican Texas Rep. Dan Crenshaw sent a Twitter mob gunning for Captain America. National Journal senate correspondent Zach Cohen caught up with Evans in early February, but “The Avengers” star was tight-lipped about what he was actually doing in the nation’s capitol. (RELATED: Chris Evans Shares Endearing Tribute For ‘Captain America’ Fan Who Died Of Cancer) . @ChrisEvans on the Hill, won’t say why. “I can’t dive into it. … Working on a project, but can’t get into too many details.” Says he’ll be watching #SOTU “from my hotel.” — Zach C. Cohen (@Zachary_Cohen) February 5, 2019 On Friday, Crenshaw posted two photos: one of himself with the man who brought Captain America to life and one showing his own glass eye — which is made to look like the Marvel hero’s shield. (RELATED: Dan Crenshaw Isn’t Buying Joe Kennedy’s Take On HR-1 ‘For The People’ Act) When Captain America sees your Captain America glass eye. #merica pic.twitter.com/0xHb9GjSmV — Rep. Dan Crenshaw (@RepDanCrenshaw) March 8, 2019 Evans responded by sharing the photos along with the comment, “A VERY cool use of vibranium.” A VERY cool use of vibranium https://t.co/zv5L9hqqTl — Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) March 9, 2019 Before long, Evans was taking blows from his critics on Twitter — most of whom appeared to have a problem with Crenshaw’s politics. We do not stan Dapper Nazis, Chris. pic.twitter.com/rK0mUQizlD — Clarkisha Kent: This One Lady (@IWriteAllDay_) March 9, 2019 you should’ve maybe considered googling this dude first — priscilla page (@BBW_BFF) March 9, 2019 Captain America actor Chris Evans posts a lighthearted photo with Dan Crenshaw, and half the replies are verified leftists calling him a Nazi https://t.co/kccmtztF3J — Harry Khachatrian (@Harry1T6) March 9, 2019 But as some pointed out, it was encouraging to see people who don’t necessarily agree politically still be capable of friendly conversation. Absolute idiocy. And an insult to victims of actual Nazis. Good for @DanCrenshawTX and @ChrisEvans Talk to each other. https://t.co/tIRWGRUaM9 — Dean Cain (@RealDeanCain) March 9, 2019 Disappointed to see all those people attacking @DanCrenshawTX and @ChrisEvans for taking a photo together. We need more of this. Not less. — Brandon Morse (@TheBrandonMorse) March 9, 2019 Follow Virginia on Twitter<doc-sep>Aww, Man Chris Evans, That Guy? Really?! He’s More Hydra than Avenger By Kate Hudson | Celebrity | March 9, 2019 | Chris Evans seems like a good egg—he tends to be on the right side of humanity, his dog clearly loves him, and he frequently stands up for equality and generally being kind to each other, but man, he certainly had a misstep on Twitter recently by posing for a pic with Rep. Dan Crenshaw then retweeting the pic. A VERY cool use of vibranium https://t.co/zv5L9hqqTl — Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) March 9, 2019 Here’s a reminder about the type of person Dan Crenshaw chooses to be: he thinks he knows what’s better for my uterus than I do (which is funny cuz my uterus ain’t ever getting anywhere near Dan Crenshaw;) was the admin of a super f*cking racist facebook page and actively shared videos on it, so uh, plausible deniability isn’t a thing here; and believes so much in the border wall that he wrote an op-ed for it calling the people against it “silly.” Look, maybe there was a time when we could hang out and pal around with the other side—but that time isn’t now. Here is a man, with a Captain America glass eye, pal-ing around with the guy who plays Captain America, who purports to stand against everything Crenshaw stands for—and yet?! When push came to shove, Evans had no problem with publicly associating with the guy. Ugggghhh. I’m bummed out. It is extremely easy for someone to sit within the echo chamber of Twitter saying things that sound good to them, and make other people feel like you’re on their team, but when push comes to shove it sucks that values are so easily forgotten in the name of a photo-op. It’s just a subtle way to demonstrate that while Evans talks the talks, he’s not really walking the walk, is he? I guess he doesn’t have to— none of Crenshaw’s abhorrent views are going to directly impact him, will they? Could he truly have been ignorant of Crenshaw’s views? I mean, sure, but that’s not an excuse. It’s not a luxury for a woman, person of color, or anyone that’s considered an “other” by white “Christian” men like Crenshaw to not do our due diligence when associating with people personally or professionally. We have to know who considers us a “less than” because there are so many of those people out there. It’s a survival mechanism for us. It’s not for Evans, apparently. It’s also a really weird contrast to the other photo op Evans highlighted on Twitter, Ted Lieu, who is a very vocal critic of Trump and his cronies. Yesterday I had the super cool opportunity to give my military unit coin to Captain America. @ChrisEvans#FlashbackFriday pic.twitter.com/ej9iHdS2gX — Ted Lieu (@tedlieu) March 9, 2019 It’s vital we don’t normalize people like Crenshaw who view others as less than, all in the name of not rocking the boat and getting along with everyone. Crenshaw’s views actively harm people, he doesn’t deserve our courtesy, time, or attention. It’s a real bummer that not only Evans normalized Crenshaw, he happily engaged in Twitter banter with someone who in theory is intrinsically against what Evans says he stands for, and is actively working within the government to get his agenda passed. It’s just a reminders that “seeing both sides” or finding the humanity of someone who hates the parts that make you, you, is really the ultimate white male privilege. As my mom used to tell me, you are the company you keep. Evans might want to take that into account the next time he poses for a pic or clicks retweet. ← Review: Love It Or Hate It, 'Captain Marvel' Has Nothing To Prove To You | 'SNL' Highlights: Momo Meme Bok Bok, Pete Davidson on Beckinsale, and 'Can I Play That?' → Kate is a staff contributor. You can follow her on Twitter. Header Image Source: Getty<doc-sep>
On Friday, Rep. Dan Crenshaw (R-TX) posted a picture on Twitter showing that he had met with actor Chris Evans on Capitol Hill. Crenshaw showed the actor his Captain America glass eye, much to Evans’ enjoyment. When Captain America sees your Captain America glass eye. #merica pic.twitter.com/0xHb9GjSmV — Rep. Dan Crenshaw (@RepDanCrenshaw) March 8, 2019 Evans showed his appreciation by replying, “A VERY cool use of vibranium,” which is the material used for his character's shield in the Marvel universe: A VERY cool use of vibranium https://t.co/zv5L9hqqTl — Chris Evans (@ChrisEvans) March 9, 2019 Evans’ fans, however, attacked him for meeting with the Navy SEAL veteran. In tweets, they compared Crenshaw to “Dapper Nazis” and called him a “f*cking d**chebag”: We do not stan Dapper Nazis, Chris. pic.twitter.com/rK0mUQizlD — Clarkisha Kent: This One Lady (@IWriteAllDay_) March 9, 2019 That guy is a fucking douchebag — God (@thegoodgodabove) March 9, 2019 It's a pity he seems to think the shield means building walls and caging children. — 20BiTeen Muppet (@kristenmchugh22) March 9, 2019 Chris this guy is a Nazi — Kelly Ellis (@justkelly_ok) March 9, 2019 time to cancel chris evans :( — Phil "The Zingman" Owen (@philrowen) March 9, 2019 you should've maybe considered googling this dude first — priscilla page (@BBW_BFF) March 9, 2019 The far-reaching claims of Crenshaw being a Nazi stem from being “moderator” of a Facebook group that shared far-right memes and conspiracy theories during his campaign: You need to google people ahead of time. “until the media reported about it in late August, Crenshaw was a moderator of a Facebook group that promulgates conspiracy theories and racist memes...” like the Unite the Right rally in Charlottesville ? ?https://t.co/cyghUcL0Hu — Elizabeth Hyde (@elizabethmhyde) March 9, 2019 Newsweek reported he was added to the page, without asking, in case he ever wanted to post. He only posted in the group twice and later removed himself. Crenshaw told Newsweek he "never actively managed or interacted with that page” and had “quickly forgot about the page and never saw it again.”