Aspirus fires vice president over assassination post

The escalating fallout from a Minocqua brewery owner’s social media post appearing to celebrate an assassination attempt on President Donald Trump has now cost a senior Aspirus Health executive his job and drawn sharp responses from local officials, tourism leaders, and federal law enforcement.

Aspirus Health has terminated senior vice president Brian Kellar after Kellar responded positively on social media to the widely condemned post by Minocqua Brewing Company (MBC) owner Kirk Bangstad that appeared to lament the failure of the recent assassination attempt against Trump.

Public condemnation over the post continued to roil Wisconsin politics this week. Among other more recent pushbacks, the Minocqua Area Visitors Bureau (MAVB) on Thursday rejected what it called rhetoric that jokes about or encourages political violence and said Bangstad’s views did not reflect those of the wider community.

But Aspirus’s move marked the strongest statement indicating zero tolerance for views promoting violence. In an April 29 statement, Aspirus Health president and CEO Matt Heywood confirmed Kellar’s firing but did not name him directly.

“Recently, we learned of an employee whose social media activity did not align with our shared values,” Heywood said. “That individual is no longer with our organization.”  

Heywood stressed that the decision was based on internal standards, not outside influence.

“This incident has generated extensive external commentary, but our decision was independent of that attention,” he said. “Instead, this action reflects our commitment to our culture, and to meeting the expectations our patients and communities have of us. We remain focused on the safety and well-being of those we serve.”  

Heywood said Aspirus Health was committed to providing safe, respectful and compassionate care to its patients and communities: “That commitment defines who we are and the standards we expect of every member of our organization,” he said.

Kellar was senior vice president of regional markets for Aspirus. After Bangstad’s original post, Kellar responded, posting a photo of himself on Facebook wearing a T-shirt with an anti-Trump message and a koozie referencing “free beer day,” a phrase tied to Bangstad’s controversial offer of a free beer day if Trump dies or is killed.

“Represented at Alma mater for the Notre Dame Spring Game today friends!!!” Kellar posted with the photo. “Got a lot of love for my koozie and shirt and told them where they can get theirs!!!”

Kellar’s post was originally spotted and called out by Libs of TikTok.

“A senior official at a healthcare company is supporting calls for violence against the sitting president,” Libs of TikTok posted. “Any comment, Aspirus Health?”

For his part, Bangstad took aim at Libs of TikTok.

“And lastly, I wanted to bring you this story of a healthcare executive who was fired for sharing a picture in our comments section on Facebook for wearing one of our shirts,” Bangstad wrote on social media on April 30. “Let’s be honest, he wasn’t fired for wearing that t-shirt, he was fired because a hate group called Libs of Tik Tock [sic] posted his picture on their site, and then a wild world of Russian bots and MAGA mouth-breathers descended on Aspirus’ social media accounts and demanded that he be fired.”

Bangstad said Aspirus should have just waited for the bots to go away.

“From the story released Tuesday by WSAW, the ABC [sic] affiliate in Central Wisconsin, Aspirus’ CEO couldn’t take the heat and instead of waiting 24 hours for the Russian bots to go to sleep, he decided to throw a committed longtime nonprofit healthcare leader under the bus,” he posted.

Visitors bureau, LE weighs in

As the controversy continued to grow over the week, the MAVB took what it acknowledged was an unusual step of publicly distancing itself from a local business.

“While the Visitors Bureau does not typically comment on the actions or statements of individual businesses, we felt it was important for us to address this matter directly,” the bureau said in an April 30 social media post. “We want to be clear: the Minocqua Area Visitors Bureau does not condone these comments or the opinions expressed. We strongly reject any rhetoric that makes light of or promotes political violence in any form.”

The business’s views did not align with those of the community, the bureau stated.

“The views expressed by this business do not reflect the values of our community or the Visitors Bureau,” the post stated. “This business is independently owned and operated, and its statements are its own.”

The bureau emphasized that the Minocqua area is a welcoming destination known for its natural beauty, strong sense of community, and respect for others: “We remain committed to promoting a positive experience for all who live here and visit,” the post stated. 

Bangstad’s post has also drawn the attention of law enforcement. Earlier in the week, the Milwaukee field office of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) acknowledged that it was aware of social media posts by Bangstad promising to celebrate Trump’s death, as Democrats and Republicans alike distanced themselves from the remarks.

“Hateful rhetoric and speech are despicable,” the FBI said in the statement to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. “Threats of violence or terrorism will be investigated by the FBI, and the public is encouraged to report any threats of violence.”

Per standard practice, the FBI did not confirm or deny whether it was specifically investigating Bangstad. However, on Thursday, April 30, Bangstad himself said he was contacted by federal authorities, and that they were on-site to question him. After the meeting, the FBI and U.S. Secret Service said agents conducted a voluntary interview as part of standard procedures when potential threats are identified.

“The U.S. Secret Service follows up on perceived threats against the president of the United States or any one of our protectees,” a joint statement to media read. “The FBI and Secret Service together followed up on information received and conducted further investigative steps, which included a voluntary interview with the individual.” 

The agencies declined to provide further details, citing the continuing state of the matter.

While the firing at Aspirus marks one of the most significant consequences resulting from the post so far, as previously reported, the issue has worked its way into the state’s gubernatorial campaign, where leading Democratic candidate Francesca Hong is a past donor to Bangstad, and into the third congressional district race, where a former Bangstad employee, Rebecca Cooke, is trying to unseat Republican incumbent Derrick Van Orden.

Richard Moore is the author of “Dark State” and may be reached at richardd3d.substack.com.