A well-known far-right social media account has called out a California Lutheran University professor over alleged online comments about the Trump assassination attempt, but both the educator and the school say the post in question is false.
The school says police are investigating after TikTok’s Libs falsely suggested exercise science teacher Louise Kelly made “inappropriate and intolerable” comments.
On Monday, the Liberals’ X account reposted images first posted by a separate, less-followed account. The photos appeared to show Kelly commenting on Facebook that she wanted former President Trump killed in a future assassination attempt and that she would do it herself if she “wasn’t so far away.”
According to Cal Lutheran spokesman Mark Berry, Kelly said she never made the comments, adding that upon further inspection, it became apparent to the professor and the university that the image with the comments had been doctored.
TikTok liberals tagged both Cal Lutheran and the Secret Service in their post and wrote above the original social media post, “Hey @CalLutheran, is this one of your employees?” The liberals’ post had been viewed 1.3 million times as of Wednesday night, sparking outrage online and in real life. Citing “social media reports,” the Ventura County Republican Party called for Kelly’s firing on Tuesday.
In a statement on social media platform X, the university said Kelly had “contacted the police regarding his legal options” regarding the “fraudulent” comments.
“Cal Lutheran is also in communication with local authorities regarding this egregious action and the resulting comments against Professor Kelly and the institution,” the statement said.
Berry said Kelly does not conduct interviews.
Libs of TikTok is run by a woman named Chaya Raichik and posts far-right and anti-trans content. According to a 2022 profile in the Washington Post, the account has been “a driving force in right-wing online discourse.”
An email sent to two addresses listed on the Libs of TikTok account seeking comment did not receive an immediate response.
After issuing a press release Tuesday calling for Kelly’s firing, the Ventura Republican Party issued a second one later in the day. In that statement, Executive Director Joe Piechowski said the party had received a response from Cal Lutheran and that, “based on what they have told us, I look forward to seeing the police investigation resolved and those responsible brought to justice.”
