Tim Walz's military record is under scrutiny. Here's a breakdown of his National Guard record — and of JD Vance's record as a Marine.
Republicans, including GOP vice presidential candidate JD Vance, are scrutinizing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's military record now that he has been named Kamala Harris's running mate on the Democratic ticket.
Walz, who served in the Army National Guard, and Vance, who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, are the first military veterans to be at the top of a major party ticket since John McCain in 2008.
Questions surrounding the timing of Walz’s retirement before a possible deployment to Iraq were coupled with scrutiny of the characterization of his rank after retirement.
What happened this week
On Wednesday, Vance resurfaced attacks made by a GOP gubernatorial opponent of Walz's in 2022 about Walz's decision to retire before his unit deployed to Iraq.
“When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, you know what he did? He dropped out of the Army and allowed his unit to go without him — a fact that he's been criticized for aggressively by a lot of the people he served with,” Vance said.
The Harris-Walz campaign responded in a statement saying: "After 24 years of military service, Governor Walz retired in 2005 and ran for Congress, where he chaired Veterans Affairs and was a tireless advocate for our men and women in uniform — and as Vice President of the United States he will continue to be a relentless champion for our veterans and military families."
Vance also laid into Walz for a comment he made, in an undated clip posted by the Harris-Walz campaign, about gun control when he said, “We can make sure those weapons of war, that I carried in war, are only carried in war.”
While Walz was deployed during his time with the National Guard, he never served in combat, according to CNN.
“Well I wonder, Tim Walz, when were you ever in war? What was this weapon you carried into war?” Vance demanded, referring to the clip posted by the Harris-Walz campaign.
A Harris campaign spokesperson replied, "In [Walz’s] 24 years of service, the Governor carried, fired and trained others to use weapons of war innumerable times. Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American's service to this country — in fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. It's the American way."
Tim Walz’s military service
Walz served honorably in the National Guard for 24 years. He enlisted with the Nebraska National Guard on April 8, 1981 — two days after his 17th birthday — and served as an infantry senior sergeant and an administrative specialist, the Minnesota National Guard said in an email to Yahoo News.
In 1996, Walz transferred to serving in the Minnesota National Guard’s 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery. “He held multiple positions within field artillery such as firing battery chief, operations sergeant, first sergeant, and culminated his career serving as the command sergeant major for the battalion,” Minnesota National Guard spokesperson Lt. Col. Kristen Augé told Yahoo News.
On Aug. 3, 2003, Walz deployed to Vicenza, Italy, to support Operation Enduring Freedom following the 9/11 attacks. “The battalion supported security missions at various locations in Europe and Turkey,” the Minnesota National Guard said. During that time, Walz did not engage in combat and returned to Minnesota in April 2004.
In January 2005, Walz filed to run for Congress, with paperwork indicating it was certified by the Federal Election Commission in February 2005.
According to a March 2005 press release issued by Walz’s office, the National Guard Public Affairs Office announced that month “a possible partial mobilization of roughly 2,000 troops from the Minnesota National Guard.” Walz said at the time he was determined to stay in the congressional race despite a possible tour of duty in Iraq.
“As Command Sergeant Major I have a responsibility not only to ready my battalion for Iraq, but also to serve if called on. I am dedicated to serving my country to the best of my ability, whether that is in Washington DC or in Iraq,” Walz is quoted as saying in the statement.
The impending 2005 Iraq deployment
Walz retired from the Minnesota Army National Guard's 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery on May 16, 2005. The Star Tribune said Walz left the guard in order to focus on his run for Congress.
On July 14, 2005, two months after Walz retired, his unit — the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery — was alerted that it would have to mobilize to Iraq, CBS News reported. The unit received an official mobilization order on Aug. 14 and the unit deployed to Iraq in October 2005.
However, Walz has been accused of retiring from the National Guard in order to avoid being deployed to Iraq. When Walz ran for Minnesota governor in 2018, retired Command Sgt. Majs. Thomas Behrends and Paul Herr posted a letter on Facebook accusing Walz of having “embellished” his military career in the National Guard.
“Between the time the warning order was given and his ‘retirement,’ he told Brigade Command Sergeant Major not to worry, that he would be going on the mission. It appears that was a lie,” the letter alleges. Fox News and the New York Post reported that Behrends replaced Walz as command sergeant major for the unit when it was deployed to Iraq in 2005.
Behrends and Herr also took issue with the way Walz was portraying himself as a retired command sergeant major, claiming he inflated his military credentials.
Walz’s retirement rank
While Walz served as a command sergeant major, he reverted back to the rank of master sergeant when he retired.
“He retired as a master sergeant in 2005 for benefit purposes because he did not complete additional coursework at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy,” the Minnesota National Guard told Yahoo News.
Politico reported that the Harris-Walz campaign had changed Walz’s title from “retired command sergeant major,” which was inaccurate, to what now says he “served as command sergeant major,” which is accurate. Yahoo News reached out to the Harris-Walz campaign, which declined to comment.
Vance’s military service
The Marine Corps confirmed to Yahoo News that Vance served for four years. Vance enlisted under “James D. Hamel” as a combat correspondent on Sept. 22, 2003, with his last date of service on Sept. 21, 2007.
The Corps also confirmed to Yahoo News that he was deployed to Iraq from August 2005 until February 2006.
Vance detailed his Iraq war deployment as a military journalist in his 2016 memoir Hillbilly Elegy, describing how he would document marines and their work, escort the civilian press and do community outreach to meet with locals in “unprotected Iraqi territory.”
Vance told reporters at an event in Wisconsin on Wednesday, “I served in a combat zone. I never said that I saw a firefight myself, but I’ve always told the truth about my Marine Corps service.”
