GOP rep releases campaign ad ripping Kaepernick, ‘The Squad’

Rep. Bradley Byrne (R-Ala.) has released a new advertisement for this Senate campaign targeting the progressive congresswomen in “the squad” as well as former NFL quarterback-turned-activist Colin Kaepernick.

Byrne discusses his late brother Dale in the ad, who died in 2013 from a respiratory illness Byrne’s campaign said was contracted during military service and deployments to Iraq, AL.com reported.

“When the towers fell, I knew my brother would be going to war,” Byrne said in the ad. “Dale was a true patriot. I can’t bring him back. I miss him every day.”

Byrne goes on to accuse Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-Minn.) of “cheapening” the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

Omar has faced criticism for her comments in a speech to the Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) in which she said that after the attack, some people equated all Muslims with terrorists. 

“CAIR was founded after 9/11 because they recognized that some people did something, and that all of us were starting to lose access to our civil liberties,” she said in comments that have drawn criticism. Some, however, said her comments were taken out of context.

Byrne also targeted Kaepernick for his protests when he would kneel during the national anthem before games as a demonstration against racial inequality in the U.S.

Byrne also called out “the squad,” the nickname for progressive congresswomen Omar and Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.), Rashida Tlaib (D-Mich.) and Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.).

“It hurts me to hear Ilhan Omar cheapening 9/11, entitled athletes dishonoring our flag, the squad attacking America,” Byrne said.

“Dale fought for that right, but I will not let them tear our country apart. That’s why I’m running for Senate,” he continues. He is seated by a campfire where he and his brother grew up in Baldwin County, Ala., according to AL.com.

Dale Byrne served in the Alabama National Guard and was deployed to multiple overseas sites, including Kuwait and Iraq. He died in October 2013, and the Byrne campaign has said the respiratory illness he struggled with was linked to veterans who were surrounded by burn pits on military bases in Iraq.

Byrne is one of seven GOP candidates running for the Republican nomination in the Alabama Senate race this year against incumbent Sen. Doug Jones (D).

Other candidates include former U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions, who previously held the seat; former Auburn University head football coach Tommy Tuberville; state Rep. Arnold Mooney; and others.