Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, returned to his committee duties on Thursday after recovering from eye surgery due to complications of his combat injuries, saying wounds like his are sometimes the sacrifice of military service.
Crenshaw got back in the saddle Thursday, returning to the House Energy and Commerce Committee’s climate change subcommittee for a hearing featuring Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Michael Regan.
The Texas Republican had emergency surgery last month to fix a detached retina that occurred due to the injuries he sustained while serving as a Navy SEAL in Afghanistan.
Crenshaw said it was “good to be back” with his fellow committee members and told his colleagues that they don’t “need to feel bad” for him.
REP. DAN CRENSHAW SAYS HE’LL BE ‘BLIND FOR ABOUT A MONTH’ AFTER EYE SURGERY
“We raise our right hand and then we ask to go to war, and sometimes this is what happens,” Crenshaw said.
“But I hope to be back to normal within a couple months,” the Texas congressman added. “But, for now, even a blind knuckle-dragger can do a hearing, so here I am and let’s get to work.”
Crenshaw announced that he would be “blind for about a month” after his eye surgery earlier this month, and had to lie face-down during his recovery.
The injury stemmed from an IED explosion that hit him while he was serving in Afghanistan. The blast took his right eye and damaged his left, leading to the detached retina that had him homebound in Houston up until today.
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“This is a terrifying prognosis for someone with one eye, and the nature of the injuries that I sustained in Afghanistan,” Crenshaw said in a statement. “Anyone who knows the history of my injuries knows that I don’t have a ‘good eye’, but half a good eye.”
“I’m sorry to inform everyone that I will pretty much off the grid for the next few weeks,” Crenshaw wrote. “I have gotten through worse before, and I will get through this.”