Rep. Dan Crenshaw, R-Texas, discussed youth involvement in politics and fiscal conservatism in Betts Theater Tuesday.

Crenshaw, a former Navy SEAL elected to the House of Representatives in 2018, discussed his beliefs on the role of government and what he characterized as the mislabeling of traditional political ideologies by young people. About 200 people attended the event, which was hosted by GW College Republicans.

Crenshaw called for the return of civility in political discourse, which he said would mitigate increasing partisan political tension. He said people should attack ideas rather than take “cheap shots” at each other.

“It’s a sad time in our culture where we’re just out to get each other,” Crenshaw said.

He added that younger people often incorrectly use labels like “socially liberal” to describe their lifestyle choices instead of their personal views on policy issues, which leads young people to take political critiques of their policy choices more personally.

Crenshaw also cautioned students about social media, urging them to adopt a skeptical attitude toward what’s said on the platforms.

“It’s OK just not to be sure,” he said. “What’s not OK is to be highly opinionated but also not very sure of the facts. It’s OK to take a little bit of time. It’s OK not to choose a side.”

Crenshaw also denounced socialism, adding that he believes some supporters of socialism do not understand the term’s economic meaning.

He said federal legislators sometimes allocate funds to address issues based on emotional reasoning rather than evaluating need or the efficacy of the additional spending. Crenshaw characterized this “puppy problem” as a contributing factor of irresponsible government spending.

“This is what happens in Congress,” he said. “The size of your heart is attached to a dollar sign. If you’re not willing to spend more dollars, you’re immoral.”

Crenshaw said the ability of citizens to be self-reliant rather than dependent on government intervention is among a culture’s “most important foundations.”

“If you’re not personally responsible, by definition you think somebody else should be responsible for you,” he said. “Then you’ll be very quick to ask a politician to make them responsible for you.”

Crenshaw added that Americans should consider an issue’s scope before demanding government action because voters have misconceptions about the government’s ability to accomplish certain tasks. Crenshaw said conservatives have a greater “sense of humility” in informing voters that the government can’t create perfect solutions.

“We should be humble about what is possible,” Crenshaw said. “I don’t believe that a group of experts at a bureaucratic level or the administrative state can actually solve all of the problems, can create the perfect one-size-fits-all solution.”