EXCLUSIVE: Top general's blast at Vermont Nat'l Guard bombs

Ted Cohen/Patch.com

PATCH.COM EXCLUSIVE

A top retired U.S. Army general is in hot water for mocking the Vermont National Guard in an appearance on Fox News.

Lt. Gen. Keith Kellogg compared the Vermont military unit's supposed lack of experience to the allegedly poor-Russian performance in that nation's war against Ukraine.

The Russians are doing so bad "it's almost like the Vermont National Guard using nuclear weapons," said Kellogg, who was national security advisor to Vice President Mike Pence.

The internecine warfare between competing U.S. military brass offers a rare public glimpse into interagency government squabbling.

Kellogg, who was the executive secretary and chief of staff of the National Security Council in the Trump administration, is now a top pundit who's been appearing on various TV networks discussing the Russian-Ukraine war.

Before Kellogg, who is a retired three-star general, made the controversial comment on Fox News, he prefaced it by saying that he "probably shouldn't say this because I will insult Vermont," but he went ahead and made the statement anyway criticizing the Vermont National Guard.

Vermont National Guard officials later said they "reached out" to Kellogg "on social media to clear the air" after a Patch.com reporter informed them of Kellogg's broadside.

"The Vermont National Guard is well regarded for its professionalism and excellence," said spokesman Marcus Tracy, defending the unit.

Vermont National Guard officials said they did not know about Kellogg's controversial televised remarks until they were notified by Patch.com.

Kellogg, a retired lieutenant general in the United States Army, served as national security advisor on an acting basis following the resignation of Michael T. Flynn.

Tracy further defended the guard by saying the VNG is "home to the only Army Mountain Warfare School in the U.S. Army, 86th Infantry Brigade Combat Team (Mountain) – the only Mountain Infantry Brigade in the U.S. Army, the National Guard Biathlon Program that recently competed in the Winter Olympics and the first operational F-35A Lightning II Fighter Wing in the Air National Guard."

Kellogg, following criticism of his remarks, tweeted to the Vermont National Guard, saying, "I meant no disrespect to the Green Mountain Boys of VTNG. I will take you any day over the Russian Army ."

But he did not explain why he made the critical comment in the first place, nor did he apologize.

Vermont National Guard officials attempted to paste over the feud, tweeting back to Kellogg, "Thank you sir. You're welcome to come up and visit anytime."

In their initial tweet to Kellogg after first hearing about the criticism he leveled at them, guard artificials wrote "easy there, Gen. Kellogg."