The latest entry from the Department of the Hard to Believe comes ... a Twitter battle about former NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick involving the former president of Iran and a sitting U.S. senator.

It started on Monday when Mahmoud Ahmadinejad tweeted words of support for Kaepernick from his verified account.

"(U)nfortunately once again @Kaepernick7 is not on a NFL roster. Even though he is one of the best Quarterbacks in the league," Ahmadinejad wrote.

This was even before news of Nike's controversial ad campaign centered around Kaepernick went public.

Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) jumped on that tweet and promptly made the connection between Ahmadinejad and Beto O'Rourke, Cruz's opponent in November's midterm elections. O'Rourke recently appeared in a viral video defending NFL players' rights to protest racial injustice by kneeling during the national anthem.

"When a radical anti-Semite, anti-American Iranian dictator emphatically agrees with you," Cruz tweeted, "maybe that's a sign Beto, the NFL, and Nike are all on the wrong side of the American people ...."

This isn't the first time Ahmadinejad has offered a hot take involving an American athlete. Exactly one week earlier, he called out French Open tennis officials for barring Serena Williams from wearing an all-black "catsuit" at next year's tournament.

"Unfortunately some people in all Countries including my Country, haven't realized the true meaning of freedom," he tweeted.

Interestingly, when Ahmadinejad was still in power, Iran banned its citizens from using Twitter.

Ahmadinejad still lives in Iran since leaving office, but he tweets in English on his official account -- on subjects ranging from the Middle East to LeBron James.

Follow Gardner on Twitter @SteveAGardner