It's often hilarious to see Democratic candidates act as if they're just one of the regular folks doing things Americans do, and sometimes it's actually dangerous.

That was evidenced recently when Democratic Senate candidate Lucas Kunce attempted a photo op by hanging out at a "firing range" where he and former lawmaker Adam Kinzinger were shooting AR-15s at close-range -- too close -- targets. 

According to Fox News, one of the reporters covering the staged shooting range event was injured by a fragment from one of the bullets fired, sparking immediate backlash across social media.

Luckily, the reporter wasn't seriously injured from the fragment, but it undoubtedly could have gone that way.

What happened?

KSHB-TV’s Ryan Gamboa was struck by a fragment of a bullet fired from Kunce's AR-15, prompting Kunce, a Marine veteran, to apply first aid by wrapping the wound in gauze.

The Missouri Senate candidate posted a recap of the disaster on his X account, though he clearly downplayed the outcome as much as possible.

Great day at the range today with my friend @AdamKinzinger. We got to hang out with some union workers while exercising our freedom. Always have your first aid kit handy. Shrapnel can always fly when you hit a target like today, and you’ve got to be ready to go. We had four first aid kits, so we were able to take care of the situation, and I’m glad Ryan is okay and was able to continue reporting," he wrote.

Great day at the range today with my friend @AdamKinzinger. We got to hang out with some union workers while exercising our freedom. Always have your first aid kit handy. Shrapnel can always fly when you hit a target like today, and you’ve got to be ready to go. We had four first… pic.twitter.com/Qu4YxfrtrU

— Lucas Kunce (@LucasKunceMO) October 23, 2024

Fox News noted:

KSHB-TV’s Ryan Gamboa was the only person injured after a bullet fragment struck his arm, and Kunce, a Marine Corps veteran who was shooting an AR-15 at the time, wrapped his wound with gauze, the Kansas City Star reported.

Kunce and Kinzinger were absolutely roasted across social media over the incident, especially given the fact that photos from the event show they were shooting steel targets at close range, which is a bad idea for high-powered rifles.

Social media reacts

Users across the social media world piled on with their criticism over Kunce's near disaster.

"You could’ve killed somebody today, you freaking moron. What kind of a brain dead idiot shoots steel inside 10 yards with a rifle?" one X user wrote.

Another X user wrote, "None of you should be allowed anywhere near long guns. A lot of unsafe and idiotic practices here."

Needless to say, Kunce probably won't be doing any additional shooting range events between now and the election.