A New Mexico Republican included an image of the extremist who executed James Foley in a new political ad, despite the family’s wishes that the footage not be viewed.
The ad promotes Republican candidate and retired Marine Corp Reserve Colonel Allen Weh in his campaign against Democratic incumbent Sen. Tom Udall, who is up by double digits according to recent polling.
The clip contrasts images of President Obama on vacation in Martha’s Vineyard with dramatic, violent images from the Middle East, while weaving in shots of Udall remarking that he supports diplomacy efforts abroad.
Halfway through the ad, right after Udall’s remarks, a close-up of Foley’s masked murderer is shown with a knife. Foley, a photojournalist, was held by ISIS captors for two years before being beheaded on a video tape as retaliation for American airstrikes in Iraq. Foley himself is not shown, but on the heels of widespread news coverage of his murder the context is unmistakable.
Foley’s family has plead with the public to not watch the video. “Please honor James Foley and respect my family’s privacy. Don’t watch the video. Don’t share it. That’s not how life should be,” cousin Kelly Foley tweeted after it surfaced, though her account has since been deleted. Weh’s campaign has yet to respond to msnbc’s request for a comment; we’ll update if they do.
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