Representative Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., has proudly stated that White House chief of staff John Kelly “is a hypocrite who is a disgrace to the uniform he used to wear. He has no honor and should be drummed out of the White House along with the white supremacists…”
Gutierrez claims that Kelly privately supports the continuation of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA), and is betraying his principles by supporting President Trump’s revocation of the program. While Gutierrez has the right to say whatever he wishes, his words are disgraceful. Accusing Kelly of acting dishonorably, Gutierrez throws scorn on the former’s lifetime of immense national service.
It’s a life of service that began in 1970 when Kelly joined the U.S. Marines as a private. Rising to the rank of sergeant in just two years, Kelly then attended college. On graduation, he did not remain in civilian life but instead became a Marine infantry officer. In the 35 years that followed, Kelly would command Marines in the invasion of Iraq, in two bloody operational tours fighting al Qaeda in Iraq’s Anbar province, and as the chief military assistant to the Secretary of Defense.
Supported by his wife, Karen, Kelly imparted this legacy of service to his family; his two sons, Robert and John, followed him into the Marines. But in November 2010, tragedy struck.
Robert was killed in action in Afghanistan’s Helmand province while leading Marines in offensive operations against the Taliban. A friend told the Military Times that Robert had lived to serve: “I think he always knew he was going into the military. When we were in school, he studied a lot of military history — he was a big reader and a history buff.” Robert was obviously that finest of Marine officers: a scholar and a warrior. But the legacy of his life is also a touchstone for the Kelly family character: patriotism, sacrifice, and intellectual forcefulness.
Gutierrez? After spending his student years as a socialist activist, Gutierrez worked as a cab driver and then entered Chicago politics. The Windy City waltz has been Gutierrez’s pastime for the last 34 years.
Contrast these two lives and remind yourself of Gutierrez’s words: Kelly is “a disgrace to the uniform” and one with “no honor.”
And Democrats wonder why they were destroyed in the last election?
