First Green Beret In Congress Reacts To Tim Walz’s Military Record: ‘He Has Some Explaining To Do’

The first Green Beret to serve in Congress, Rep. Mike Waltz (R-FL), wants Minnesota Governor Tim Walz to clarify his military record now that he is running to become vice president on the Democratic Party’s 2024 ticket.

“I’ve seen the reports on Tim Walz’s military record and he has some explaining to do,” Waltz said in a post to X on Wednesday.

In a video he also shared, Waltz said there is a “lot of discussion” within the veterans community about Walz’s more than two decades in the Army National Guard and that it “boils down to two issues,” which the congressman then explained.

I’ve seen the reports on Tim Walz’s military record and he has some explaining to do. pic.twitter.com/Qo6lhUbS4h

— Rep. Mike Waltz (@michaelgwaltz) August 7, 2024

“One is the fact that he’s described himself over his political career as a sergeant major, as the highest enlisted rank in the Army,” Waltz said. “He was promoted to sergeant major, but then in order to stay in that rank, you have to complete certain training. You have to complete the sergeant major’s academy, which he never did. So he was subsequently demoted to master sergeant before he retired.”

Waltz said there are “a lot of questions” about how Walz, who is now hitting the campaign trail with Vice President Kamala Harris, should be describing himself. “I think those are fair to ask, and he should answer them,” Waltz added.

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And the “bigger issue,” according to the Republican, is Walz “walking away from his soldiers after they had been called to go to Iraq.” Waltz noted that he commanded Green Beret and said, “Everything that you do prepares you for that moment when you have to lead your men and women into harm’s way.”

In a football reference, Waltz continued, “It’s kind of like the quarterback of a big team walking away from their team right before they go to the Super Bowl. I’ve never heard anything like it, especially the fact that he was a command sergeant major. I’ve never heard of a commander or a sergeant major stepping away from their unit before they go down range.”

Waltz concluded his video by urging reporters to press Walz on his military record.

“The media needs to do their job and ask these tough questions and Walz needs to answer them,” Waltz said. “The veterans community, for one, is demanding an explanation of why he didn’t fulfill his duty as a command sergeant major and go into harm’s way with the men and women he was leading.”