Dan Crenshaw defends President Trump and border wall in first-floor speech in Congress

U.S. Representative for Texas's 2nd congressional district Dan Crenshaw talks to ROTC leaders before the 13th Annual MLK Youth Parade Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019, in Houston. U.S. Representative for Texas's 2nd congressional district Dan Crenshaw talks to ROTC leaders before the 13th Annual MLK Youth Parade Saturday, Jan. 19, 2019, in Houston. Photo: Steve Gonzales, Houston Chronicle / Staff Photographer Photo: Steve Gonzales, Houston Chronicle / Staff Photographer Image 1 of / 5 Caption Close Dan Crenshaw defends President Trump and border wall in first-floor speech in Congress 1 / 5 Back to Gallery

Newly elected Congressman Dan Crenshaw used his first speech on the floor of the U.S. House to strongly defend President Donald Trump and advocate for a border wall along the Texas border.

“The president didn’t cave to Democrats,” the Houston Republican said in the speech last week.

Instead, he said Trump showed compassion by re-opening the government and assuring that government workers would get paid.

“The truth is, the president has compromised time after time,” Crenshaw said.

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Crenshaw said while Democrats are taking a “victory lap” over the shutdown ending, he said their refusal to allow a border wall to be built is not worth celebrating to him.

“If you think winning means a porous border with 400,000 people apprehended illegally every year, then your definition of winning is different than mine,” Crenshaw said.

Crenshaw, a retired Navy SEAL, won the 2nd Congressional District last year. At age 34, Crenshaw is the youngest member of the Texas Congressional delegation, and one of the youngest Republicans in Congress.

He’s fast become one of the Republican Party’s most celebrated new members of Congress. He’s already made over a half-dozen national television interviews and is in high demand, particularly for conservative media groups.

jeremy.wallace@chron.com