The Governor of Minnesota Tim WalzThe US military’s military record has been called into question following Vice President Kamala Harris’ announcement Walz as running mate on the Democratic ticket.
On Wednesday, former President Donald Trump’s former running mate, Sen…. JD Vance Ohio’s Rep., who is an Iraq War veteran, took the opportunity to target his opponent’s military record, resurfacing allegations about his deployments and retirement from the Guard.
Walz served honorably in the Nebraska and Minnesota National Guards, earning medals and participating in Operation Enduring Freedom. But his final days of service have been called into question, due to his rank and the possibility that he retired to avoid a deployment to Iraq in 2005.
A CBS News review of Walz’s military record and statements from the Minnesota National Guard shows that Walz rose to the rank of command sergeant major, but was demoted to master sergeant after his retirement because he had not completed the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.
Regarding Iraq, records show that Walz retired before his battalion was mobilized and deployed to Iraq. A 2005 statement on his website indicates that Walz was initially set to deploy to Iraq as part of his congressional bid. CBS News has asked Walz to comment on when he decided to retire.
A Glimpse of the Waltz in the Army
Walz retired from the Minnesota National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment in 2005 after more than 24 years of service, the Minnesota National Guard told CBS News.
Walz first enlisted in the Nebraska Army National Guard in April 1981, serving as an infantry senior sergeant and administrative specialist. In 1996, Walz transferred to the Minnesota Army National Guard, where he initially served as a gun crewman and field artillery senior sergeant.
Minnesota National Guard spokeswoman Lt. Col. Kristen Augé told CBS News that Walz “served in several positions within the field artillery, such as gunnery battery commander, operations sergeant, first sergeant, and culminated his career serving as the battalion command sergeant major.”
Walz received several Army commendations and medals during his more than 24 years of service.
Walz deployed in August 2003 to support Operation Enduring Freedom. The Minnesota National Guard told CBS News that the battalion supported security missions in various locations in Europe and Turkey. Walz was then stationed in Vicenza, Italy, and returned to Minnesota in April 2004.
Controversy over deployment to Iraq in 2005
On Wednesday, Vance reiterated allegations that Walz retired from the National Guard to avoid deployment to Iraq.
“When the United States Marine Corps, when the United States of America asked me to go to Iraq to serve my country, I did it. I did what they asked me to do, and I did it honorably and I’m very proud of that service,” Vance said.
He added: “When Tim Walz was invited by his country to go to Iraq, do you know what he did? He left the Army and allowed his unit to leave without him, something for which he was roundly criticized by many of the people he served with.”
Those accusations began to gain prominence when Walz ran for governor of Minnesota in 2018. At the time, retired Army veterans Thomas Behrends and Paul Herr, who both served as command sergeants major, posted a lengthy letter on Facebook accusing Walz of “embellishing” his military career and abandoning his National Guard battalion before a deployment to Iraq in 2005.
In the letter, Behrends and Herr write that in early 2005, Walz’s unit, the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, was scheduled to deploy to Iraq. At the time, Walz was the unit’s command sergeant major.
Behrends and Herr said that from the time the unit was ordered to prepare for deployment to Iraq and when Walz retired, he told other Army leaders he would go to Iraq but then resigned his position before the deployment to avoid going to a combat zone.
According to the Star Tribune, Walz left the Guard to run for Congress. In 2006, he won his congressional race against a six-term Republican incumbent.
The documents show that Walz officially filed the paperwork with the Federal Election Commission on February 10, 2005.
In March 2005, the National Guard announced a possible partial mobilization of about 2,000 Minnesota National Guard troops, according to an archived press release from Tim Walz for the U.S. Congress.
“I do not yet know whether my artillery unit will be part of this mobilization and I am not in a position to comment further on the details of the deployment,” Walz said in the March 2005 statement.
“As command sergeant major, I have the responsibility not only to prepare my battalion for Iraq, but also to serve if called upon. I am committed to serving my country to the best of my ability, whether in Washington, D.C., or in Iraq,” said Walz, who indicated at the time that he had no intention of dropping out of the race. “I am fortunate to have a strong, enthusiastic support group and a very dedicated and intelligent wife. Both of those will play a major role in my campaign, whether I am in Minnesota or in Iraq.”
The Minnesota National Guard told CBS News that Walz retired on May 16, 2005. CBS News has asked Walz to clarify the date he submitted his retirement papers.
The Minnesota National Guard told CBS News that Walz’s unit, the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, received an alert order to mobilize to Iraq on July 14, 2005, two months after Walz retired, according to Lt. Col. Ryan Rossman, who is the Minnesota National Guard’s director of operations. The official mobilization order came on Aug. 14 of that year, and the unit was mobilized in October.
CBS News reviewed the Minnesota National Guard’s deployment history, which shows that in the fall of 2005, the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment was mobilized in preparation for a deployment in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom. The battalion trained at Camp Shelby in Mississippi and deployed to Iraq as a motorized security task force.
In 2018, Tom Hagen, a military reservist who served in Iraq, wrote a letter to the Winona Daily News saying Walz was not forthcoming about his service record and wanted people to know that the future Minnesota governor had not served in Iraq or Afghanistan.
Walz responded in the same newspaper and criticized Hagan for allegedly dishonoring a veteran, according to MPR News. Walz wrote: “There is a code of honor among those who have served, and normally this type of partisan political attack only comes from someone who has never worn a uniform.”
Joseph Eustice, a 32-year veteran of the Guard who also led Walz’s battalion, told the Star Tribune in October 2022 that the governor had done his duty.
“He was a great soldier. When he chose to leave, he had every right to leave,” Eustice said.
Walz’s rank as command sergeant major
Official biographies posted on the Minnesota government website and on Vice President Kamala Harris’ website describe Walz as a “retired command sergeant major.” However, documents reviewed by CBS News show that this is not accurate: Although Walz served at one point as a command sergeant major, he retired at a lower rank.
Army veteran Anthony Anderson regularly obtains military records from the Department of Defense using the Freedom of Information Act and has worked with CBS News on similar Walz’s records were provided to CBS News for review. CBS News also requested the documents from the National Guard.
One of the documents shows that Walz reverted to master sergeant after serving as command sergeant major when he retired from the Minnesota National Guard in May 2005.
Army soldiers promoted to the rank of sergeant major or command sergeant major are required to complete the Sergeant Major Course, or what was formerly known as the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.
Lt. Col. Augé, a spokesman for the Minnesota National Guard, told CBS News that Walz retired as a master sergeant in 2005 for “social reasons” because he did not complete additional courses at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.
Although Walz may say he served as a command sergeant major in the Minnesota National Guard, his official biographies are incorrect when they refer to him as a “retired command sergeant major.”
James LaPorta
