Any NFL player who refuses to stand for the national anthem "should already be gone," Florida Republican Congressman Brian Mast wrote in a Facebook post.
Mast, who lost both his legs to an IED blast while serving in the army in Afghanistan, wrote in the post that there is no reason the league can't deal with the issue since the NFL has rules for much less important matters.
"I think we have a right to be upset," Mast said on "Fox & Friends" on Wednesday, saying the players, by protesting during the national anthem, "are stealing this moment of historic unity of patriotism, of celebration."
Asked what he would say to those who have the opposite opinion, he acknowledged that free speech is an important part of the country's values.
"But just as it's their right to go out there and protest, even if I consider it to be hugely distasteful, it's our right to not go out there and watch them play, it's the right of the owners to go out there and say, 'if that's the way that you're going to go out there and disrespect this country, you're not going to be a member of this team,'" Mast said.
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