The first black Republican elected to the U.S. Senate said Thursday that NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick is making a “drastic mistake” by continuing his sit-down protest of the national anthem, and said the American flag can never be “antithetical to freedom.”

“This country is the beacon of light for all of mankind and anyone that stands up or refuses to stand, I think you’re making a drastic mistake and you’re bringing the focus to you and not the underlying issue,” Sen. Tim Scott, R-S.C., said on Fox News.