Story highlights Raul A. Reyes says that Budweiser and 84 Lumber's ads are not likely to change anyone's mind

He criticizes the ads for playing to myths surrounding immigration

Raul A. Reyes, an attorney and member of the USA Today board of contributors, writes frequently for CNN Opinion. Follow him on Twitter @RaulAReyes. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his.

(CNN) There is no arena in which politics cannot intrude. First came several awards shows that featured political statements by celebrities, and then a backlash against the New England Patriots for the team's ties to Donald Trump. And then Sunday night's Super Bowl featured two commercials with immigration themes, one by Budweiser and the second by Pennsylvania-based 84 Lumber.

Aside from injecting a contentious element into one of the few events that brings Americans together, the problem with both commercials is that they misrepresent the stories they are supposed to be telling. They play to myths surrounding immigration, which is not helpful to understanding the issue.

The Budweiser commercial was the better of the two ads. The company presented a fictionalized version of how one of its founders, Adolphus Busch, emigrated from Germany in 1857. It shows him in steerage on the boat to America, which was probably unlikely given his family's wealth . It shows him being targeted for being an immigrant, with a passerby yelling at him, "You're not wanted here!"

One scene in the commercial shows Busch's "Immigration Identification Card" being stamped as he enters the country. The implication seems to be that Busch entered the country legally, or "the right way," as some would say.

In fact, in Busch's time there weren't many distinctions between legal and illegal immigration. Our first general immigration law was not enacted until 1882, after Busch arrived in the US.

Read More