Volkmann On Leave While High School Investigates Obama Comments

Jacob Volkmann (Pictured) has been placed on paid administrative leave by his employer, White Bear Lake Area High School -- North Campus, while the institution conducts an investigation regarding the UFC lightweight’s postfight comments about President Barack Obama.

Volkmann, 30, serves as an assistant coach to the Minnesota school’s wrestling team and also coaches its youth wrestling club for children from kindergarten to sixth grade. His standing as head coach of the squad has not been affected.

“It’s very frustrating that they think that I’m being a bad influence on the students.” Volkmann told Sherdog.com. “That’s what their reason was [for placing me on leave].”

Following his split decision victory over Antonio McKee at UFC 125 on Jan. 1, Volkmann joked in a postfight interview with MMAFighting.com that he would like to fight President Obama next, because “someone needs to knock some sense into that idiot.”

Though the video garnered Volkmann a visit from the Secret Service, the Minnesotan has stood by his comments, stating on the Sherdog Radio Network that his criticism was based on his experience as a healthcare provider. A chiropractor by trade, Volkmann is not a fan of Obama’s health care bill.

“I deal with a lot of insurance, and the bill gave insurance companies quite a bit of power,” Volkmann said. “But it forced them to also give insurance to everybody, which I’m not against that at all. I’m just against the power that they got to deny claims and to deny coverage to health care providers. So that’s why I was speaking. I was speaking through the provider’s standpoint, not the insured’s standpoint.”

News of Volkmann’s issues with the high school was brought to light Wednesday morning when Volkmann’s Minnesota Martial Arts Academy training partner, Nik Lentz, wrote on Twitter that Volkmann had been “fired from teaching youth wrestling because of calling out Obama on healthcare.”

While Volkmann has not been fired, his future with the school is currently in limbo. It is unknown how long the investigation will last or what repercussions may result, if any.

When asked if he felt the fallout was being blown out of proportion from his tongue-in-cheek comments about knocking sense into the president, Volkmann asserted that the end was likely not in sight.

“I don't even think it’s done yet,” Volkmann told Sherdog.com on Wednesday. “I’ve got fricking ‘Inside Edition’ coming tomorrow.”