When Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was referred to as Kamala Harris ‘ running mate, and his accomplishments included a deployment in support of Operation Enduring Freedom and a job National Guardsman who retired as a command sergeant major after 24 years of faithful service to his country.
Walz enlisted two weeks after turning 17 in April 1981. When the planes struck the Twin Towers on September 11, 2001, Walz says he was forced to characterised in order to fulfill his patriotic duty to defend his nation in a time of conflict. He then took a pension in 2005, years after his support commitment for pension was fulfilled.
The tale as Walz tells it is not true, just like says that he served in war or retired as a command commander key.
Serving in a fight setting
Walz is a prolific plagiarist. The Harris plan posted a picture on X on August 6th, the same day that Walz was announced as her running mate, in which Walz said,” We you make sure those weapons of war, that I carried in war, are simply carried in battle.” Turns out Walz “misspoke”. To throw it in more natural words, he lied. The campaign’s first picture of Kamala Harris ‘ vice-presidential prospect, which was released on day one, contained a flagrant lay about his military services that most military soldiers would consider to be stolen courage.
The administration’s sad description — that” In his 24 years of service, the Governor carried, fired and trained others to employ weapons of war various times” — did little to alleviate the spidey senses of millions of ordinary people.
Under the increased investigation, different stories about Walz’s support started to unravel. He did not leave as a command sergeant key; instead, he did as a learn sergeant because he left before fulfilling his contractual obligations to finish the Sergeants Major Academy, a qualification required to maintain the position he was temporarily frocked in September 2004.
Reenlisting after 9/11
My first reaction to the claim that Walz reenlisted after September 11th, 2001 out of a sense of loyalty was dilemma because his time of enrollment was April 1981, and one would anticipate that, absent strange circumstances involving extensions or support breaks, his 20-year retirement date would have been April 2001, and any reenlistment or extension would have had to have been carried out in April, months due to Sept. 11, 2001.
So I looked into it. Walz and a historian from the Library of Congress Veterans History Project sat down to reflect on his military service on November 2, 2009. Walz mentioned the following about his decision to reenlist after the 9/11 attacks during the course of his description of his service to his country:
My 20 years was actually, ironically enough, up that week of September 11, 2001, because of the time I had off and made up, so I reenlisted like, I think, the vast majority people did with a real uncertainty but wanting to with a real sense of wanting to do something.
That was a lie.
But there’s more. In a letter to the editor of the Winona Daily News written by Tom Hagen, a veteran Iraqi combatant and former Minnesota Army National Guard colleague, that questioned Walz’s decision to retire within two months of receiving a warning order for his battalion to go to Iraq, Hagen wrote the following:
I re-enlisted in the country for an additional four years following Sept. 11, and I retired the year before my battalion was deployed to Iraq in order to run for Congress.
That, too, was a lie. Both of those quotes have been specifically mentioned in news media quotations to back up reports that Walz “reenlisted after 9/11 when he could have retired, having served for 20 years in 2001.” If you search for” Tim Walz reenlisted after 9/11″ on Google, you’ll find pages upon pages of publications parroting the tale Walz has told since his 2005 retirement. It’s not true.
CNN’s Dana Bash, during an interview with GOP vice-presidential candidate J. D. Vance, repeated the Walz lie as follows:” Governor Walz served 24 years — he even stayed after he could’ve retired because of 9/11 — more than the country asked of him. Do you honor his service”?
Walz’s 20-year service ended in September 2001, not his. He did n’t” stay after he could’ve retired” because he was n’t eligible to retire.
According to Walz’s href=”https://x.com/StolenValor1/status/1820863640242684021″ target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Report of Separation and Record of Service, he was put on” ING” — Inactive National Guard — from Dec. 1, 1989, to July 12, 1990, a total of 7 months and 12 days of inactive service. Walz reportedly taught in China at the time.
Additionally, the Report of Separation points out a discrepancy between his” Total Service for Retirement Pay” and” Total Service for Pay.” That difference is 7 months and 12 days.
Before there were any further service breaks or omissions to earn training and participation points in order to fulfill his annual obligations, Walz would not be eligible to retire after 20 years of service.
This would have put his eligible retirement date at Nov. 20, 2001, at the earliest — more than a month after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. At a minimum, Walz was blatantly lying in his Library of Congress Veterans Project interview about being eligible to retire, “ironically”, the week of Sept. 11, 2001.
But there’s more.
In response to media inquiries regarding the confusion around Walz’s service record, Army Col. Ryan Cochran, Minnesota National Guard’s Director of Manpower and Personnel, released the following information to the media on Aug. 13, 2024:
Media Members-
” Governor Tim Walz was informed of his retirement eligibility on August 3, 2002. On September 17, 2004, he was elevated to sergeant major (E-9 ) and immediately began working as the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery’s command sergeant major while his packet was submitted to the National Guard Bureau for appointing him as command sergeant major (E-9 ). Once approved by NGB. He was laterally appointed to the rank of sergeant major (E-9 ) on April 1, 2005. On May 16, 2005, he left the Minnesota National Guard. When did he request to retire, according to our records? Every retiree request is reviewed and approved by leadership. He was administratively reduced to master sergeant (E-8 ) on May 15, 2005, because he did not complete all required U. S. Army Sergeants Major Academy coursework”.
Take note of the first line, which reads,” Governor Tim Walz received his notification of eligibility for retirement on August 3, 2002.” According to reports, this date adds to his inactivity time in China while also meeting his needs.
Walz would have been aware that he was n’t eligible to retire” the same week as Sept. 11, 2001″, nor even the same year.
He simply was n’t eligible to retire in 2001. The story we’ve been told by Walz, the Harris campaign, and the media is riddled with lies and misrepresentations of his service. He has, in two short weeks, proven to be an inveterate liar.
Release His Military Records
What else is he lying about, as is always the case when one starts off with a lie? The question is obvious. Will Bash and the hundreds of publications that spread this lie inform the public that Walz’s account of the circumstances surrounding his reenlistment has been refuted and corrected?
Reporters who feel a sense of responsibility for the news will want to know whether Walz is required to release all of his military records or at least make it known that he reenlisted in 2001 and filed his retirement papers in 2005.
Did he reenlist before ( in April, the month of his anniversary ) or after September 11th? Did he extend his service in April 1991 to make up for his 20-year retirement years? For how long did he reenlist? He reenlisted for a bonus, and if so, did he repay the bonus for the amount he had already withdrawn from the service when he retired too early?
The Walz we were introduced to a few weeks ago, the soldier who reenlisted after 9/11 out of a patriotic duty to fight in war, who deployed “in support of Operation Enduring Freedom” and who later retired as a command sergeant major, has little resemblance to the Walz we are now aware of.
The retired command sergeant major has a new title of master sergeant. After failing to fulfill his service requirement to retire after 20 years, his patriotic reenlistment following 9/11, when he could have retired, is now required, in 2001. The veteran of the war who carried weapons during Operation Enduring Freedom was recently stationed in Vicenza, Italy to perform guard duty on front gates and crosswalks.
Walz said that he’s proud — “damn proud” — of his military service. We’ve heard a lot about that guy, but it’s obvious that Walz’s pride is reserved for the noble service of the fictional retired sergeant major and combat veteran he created for public viewing. The retired master sergeant who left his unit two months before his only chance to serve and lead his troops in battle does n’t seem to have a shred of pride for the real Walz. For 20 years, he kept that Walz a secret from the public.
There will be more, which is unavoidable when dealing with a compulsive liar. What remains to be seen is whether or not the media is interested in learning more about the legend of retired Master Sergeant Tim Walz.
With 30 years of experience in military and intelligence interrogation and human intelligence collection operations, Jason Beale ( a pseudonym ) is a retired U.S. Army interrogator and strategic debriefer. He’s on X @jabeale.
