The New Republic has the deets on this jaw-dropping campaign ad it called “possibly the most distasteful, cringe-worthy political ad of 2024 to date”:

“I have another dream!” begins the skin-crawling video, which was posted to X (formerly Twitter) on Friday. “Yes, it is me, Martin Luther King. I came back from the dead to say something, as I was saying, I have another dream—that Anthony Hudson will be Michigan 8th district’s next congressman. Yes I have a dream, again.”

Then, in a nearly equally bizarre decision, Hudson’s campaign decided to force the voice to return to the dead.

“OK, now I am going back to where I came from,” King’s cheaply manipulated voice says. “Goodbye.”

After the ad generated just the kind of revulsion it deserved, Hudson claimed he had nothing to do with the ad, even though he can be heard at the end saying he approved the message. So much for that “personal responsibility” Republicans love to tout for other people. As TNR also noted, Hudson said a volunteer gave his social media credentials to a friend who then posted the video without Hudson’s knowledge. “The volunteer has been released and all my social media credentials have been updated. I would have NEVER approved such a STUPID and DISRESPECTFUL video!” Hudson reportedly wrote on Twitter.

Well, I’ve got news for you, buddy. Martin Luther King Jr. would NEVER have endorsed you, much less cut an ad for you. Some quick Googling about Hudson reveals he has endorsed Donald Trump for president, wants “no infringements” on the Second Amendment, including a desire to “remove red flag gun laws,” and he has demanded, contrary to law, that ballots only be in English.

I’m not sure how King would have felt about ballot language but I know he was no lover of guns. And I would bet dollars to doughnuts, as my mother used to say, that he would have abhorred Donald Trump with every bone in his body.

You can listen to the ad Hudson claims he had nothing to do with below, via Heartland Signal.