GOP vets in Congress attack VP nominee Walz over his military record

A group of 50 Republican veterans serving in Congress on Wednesday attacked Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz for “egregious misrepresentations” regarding his time in the National Guard and for what they see as a decision to abandon his troops ahead of a deployment to Iraq.

But Walz supporters countered that the GOP lawmakers are mischaracterizing both the Minnesota governor’s 24 years of honorable service and their own time in the ranks.

In a letter distributed by former President Donald Trump’s election campaign , the 50 lawmakers wrote to Walz that “there is no way you can be trusted to serve as vice president” given misstatements he has made regarding his military career.

Among the complaints: that Walz uses the title “retired Command Sergeant Major” in public, that he claimed to carry weapons “in war” during his time in the military and that he retired from the Guard five months before his unit’s deployment to Iraq.

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“The honor of wearing the uniform is earned through dedication, bravery and an unwavering sense of duty,” the lawmakers wrote. “You have displayed none of these characteristics as you have lied your way through a political career launched on the foundation of a title you did not earn and combat deployments you did not take part in.”

Walz deployed to Europe with the Minnesota National Guard in support of Operation Enduring Freedom in 2003, but never set foot in a combat zone. He made the weapons comment during a 2018 campaign rally, a remark that his campaign has publicly acknowledged as a mistake.

Walz was promoted to command sergeant major in the final months of his military career but had his rank reverted to master sergeant upon retirement because he did not complete required coursework to retain the rank.

Officials from VoteVets — which is closely aligned with the Democratic Party — noted that among the signers of the Republican letter is Texas Rep. Ronny Jackson, who identifies himself in the note as a retired Navy rear admiral.

Jackson was demoted by the service to the rank of captain after his retirement following a Defense Department Inspector General’s report that substantiated allegations about inappropriate behavior while serving as the White House’s physician. VoteVets accused Jackson of “committing stolen valor” for continuing to use the revoked rank.

Officials from the group also noted that at least 20 of the GOP signers listed themselves as “retired” from the military, even though they did not serve the mandatory 20 years required for official military retirement.

And the group took aim at Rep. Troy Nehls, R-Texas, for “hypocrisy” in signing the letter criticizing Walz’s military record after months of controversy surrounding Nehl’s decision to continue wearing a revoked Combat Infantry Badge.

By Wednesday afternoon, the Trump campaign sent out an updated version of the lawmakers’ letter deleting all ranks and references to military retirement, acknowledging “a copy edit mistake made by a staffer.” However, t he original version remained on the campaign website.

Walz’s retirement from the service has been a point of contention between the presidential campaigns for the last month. Walz has said he finalized his retirement in May 2005, three months after announcing his intention to run for Congress. His unit officially received deployment notification in July 2005, and left for Iraq three months later.

Walz has publicly said he did not retire to avoid deployment and is proud of his more than two decades of service with the National Guard. Republican vice presidential nominee J.D. Vance — a Marine Corps veteran who served as a public affairs officer in Iraq — has attacked Walz for the timing of his retirement, saying he abandoned his troops as they headed off to war.

Last week, amid the growing controversy over Walz’s retirement, Democratic campaign officials released a letter signed by 1,000 veterans praising the governor’s “military service and advocacy for veterans and military families as an elected leader.”

Walz is scheduled to deliver a national address during Wednesday night’s program at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago.