Chief of Staff Kelly: High school teacher who trashed military 'ought to go to hell'

Last night, White House Chief of Staff John Kelly reacted to a California high school teacher who was caught on video calling members of the military the “lowest of our low.” Kelly was played a portion of the viral clip when he appeared on Brian Kilmeade’s radio show. Asked for his reaction, Gen. Kelly didn’t hold back. From Politico:

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“I think the guy ought to go to hell,” Kelly said in response to the remarks during an interview on Fox News Radio. “I just hope he enjoys the liberties and the lifestyle that we have fought for.”

Video of Gen. Kelly’s response is posted at Fox News. The viral clip of high school government teacher Gregory Salcido began circulating last week. Salcido, who teaches in Pico Rivera, California went on a rant after a student wore a sweatshirt that read “Marine Corps” to his class. His diatribe against the military was caught on a cell phone video and posted online last week by a friend of the student’s mother. From the LA Times:

“We’ve got a bunch of dumb … over there,” Salcido says in the recording, using a expletive. “Think about the people who you know who are over there — your freaking stupid Uncle Louie or whatever — they’re dumb … . They’re not like high-level thinkers, they’re not academic people, they’re not intellectual people; they’re the freaking lowest of our low.”…

“You better not freaking go,” Salcido says in one recording. “Don’t wear that in here.”…

While presenting his opinion on the quality of the military, Salcido also invoked what appeared to be stereotypes in reference to people in the Middle East and Asia.

“We haven’t been able to beat these guys wearing freaking robes and chanclas [flip-flops] for 15 years,” he said. “We couldn’t beat the Vietnamese — they’re a bunch of people this freaking big throwing rice at us.”

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In the same video, Salcido compared military recruiters to pimps. The student who was the focus of Salcido’s rant, who reportedly has military members in his family, has asked for an apology.

As for Salcido, he was placed on administrative leave while the school investigates the situation. The school put out a statement earlier this week saying “Our classrooms are not the appropriate place for one-sided discussions that undermine the values our families hold dear.” He has also been stripped of all committee assignments on the city council and condemned by the mayor. This local news report from Monday shows some of the reaction to this:

Here’s a longer version of the viral video:

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