WATCH: House Democrat Threatens NFL’s Anti-Trust Exemption over Treatment of Kaepernick

The chorus of outrage over Colin Kaepernick’s aborted workout at an NFL organized event last weekend, has now reached the halls of Congress.

Representative Hank Johnson (D-GA) not only expressed outrage at the NFL over the workout flap, he also made not-so-veiled threats about retaliating by going after the league’s anti-trust exemption.

Johnson called Kaepernick a “victim,” and said the NFL was persecuting him for exercising his “1st Amendment Rights.”

“It’s possible that Congress can do something,” Johnson explained to TMZ Sports. “Congress oversees the anti-trust exemption that we gave the NFL. The NFL is doing quite well with that anti-trust exemption, maybe it’s time for us to take a fresh look at it.”

The anti-trust exemption dates back to the Kennedy Administration, when the federal government gave sports league’s a special immunity which allowed teams to function together as a monopoly.

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If the league were to lose its anti-trust exemption, the result could be a loss of billions.
However, such a move would require widespread congressional support and it’s unlikely that Johnson’s anti-NFL sentiments are widely shared.

Kaepernick ditched an NFL organized workout in front of scouts and representatives from 25 teams, after a disagreement over media availability and liability waivers. Instead, the former 49er and original anthem protester opted to hold a workout at a local Atlanta high school, in front of seven or eight teams.

There is no word as of this writing, as to whether any of the teams who watched Kaepernick have a desire to sign him.

Follow Dylan Gwinn on Twitter @themightygwinn