‘Tim Walz Reenlisted After 9/11’ Is The Latest Lie About His Military Record

volsrock1

volsrock1

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Reenlisting after 9/11​



My initial reaction to the narrative that Walz reenlisted after 9/11 out of a sense of patriotism was confusion, as his date of enlistment was April 1981 and one would expect, absent unusual circumstances involving extensions or breaks in service, his 20-year retirement date would have been April 2001 and any reenlistment or extension would’ve had to have been executed in April, months prior to Sept. 11, 2001.



So I looked into it. On Nov. 2, 2009, Walz sat down with a historian from the Library of Congress Veterans History Project to memorialize his service as a military veteran. During the course of Walz’s description of his service to his country, he related the following regarding his decision to reenlist after the 9/11 attacks:



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.
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That was a lie.



But there’s more. Three years earlier, in response to a letter to the editor of the Winona Daily News written by Tom Hagen, an Iraqi war combat veteran and former colleague of Walz in the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery of the Minnesota Army National Guard, in which Hagen questioned Walz’s decision to retire within two months of receiving a warning order for his battalion to deploy to Iraq, Walz wrote the following:




After completing 20 years of service in 2001, I re-enlisted to serve our country for an additional four years following Sept. 11 and retired the year before my battalion was deployed to Iraq in order to run for Congress.
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That, too, was a lie. Both of those quotes have been exclusively linked in news media stories as citations to support reporting that Walz “reenlisted after 9/11 when he could have retired, having reached 20 years of service in 2001.” If you Google “Tim Walz reenlisted after 9/11,” you’ll find pages upon pages of publications parroting the story Walz has told since his retirement in 2005. It’s not true.


thefederalist.com

'Tim Walz Reenlisted After 9/11' Is The Latest Lie About His Record

Just like claims that he served in war, or retired as a command sergeant major, the story Walz tells about reenlisting is not true.
thefederalist.com thefederalist.com
 
So, Trump gets 4 deferments (pretty questionably, based on the reporting), says a war hero isn't a war hero because he "likes the guys who weren't captured", allegedly calls those who died in war "suckers and losers," and says the Presidential Medal of Honor is better than the military Medal of Honor....and conservatives want to keep talking about things related to the military, and disparage a guy who served for over 2 decades?
 
BartenderElite said:
So, Trump gets 4 deferments (pretty questionably, based on the reporting), says a war hero isn't a war hero because he "likes the guys who weren't captured", allegedly calls those who died in war "suckers and losers," and says the Presidential Medal of Honor is better than the military Medal of Honor....and conservatives want to keep talking about things related to the military, and disparage a guy who served for over 2 decades?
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How many deferments did Biden get? 5 plus

But the OP is about Walz...u can start a thread on Trump
 
christiefan915 said:
Not a lie. :rolleyes:

"In 2001, Walz completed the 20 years of service needed for retirement from the Guard, but he reenlisted after the September 11, 2001 attacks."
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Walz first enlisted in the Nebraska Army National Guard in April 1981

www.cbsnews.com

Tim Walz's military record under scrutiny as he joins Kamala Harris on Democratic ticket

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz's military record has come under renewed scrutiny following Vice President Kamala Harris' announcement of Walz as her running mate.
www.cbsnews.com www.cbsnews.com

SO 20 YRS WOULD HAVE BEEN UP IN APRIL 2001

are u saying he RETIRED in April 2001 and reenlisted in Sept 2001?
 
BartenderElite said:
So, Trump gets 4 deferments (pretty questionably, based on the reporting), says a war hero isn't a war hero because he "likes the guys who weren't captured", allegedly calls those who died in war "suckers and losers," and says the Presidential Medal of Honor is better than the military Medal of Honor....and conservatives want to keep talking about things related to the military, and disparage a guy who served for over 2 decades?
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Biden feigned asthma to avoid the draft. Thank God he could continue to play football. Trump's remark about McCain was made in anger. It was a dumb thing to say. McCain however gave as good as he got. He said unkind things about Trump. But I agree McCain served honorably.
 
volsrock1 said:

Reenlisting after 9/11​



My initial reaction to the narrative that Walz reenlisted after 9/11 out of a sense of patriotism was confusion, as his date of enlistment was April 1981 and one would expect, absent unusual circumstances involving extensions or breaks in service, his 20-year retirement date would have been April 2001 and any reenlistment or extension would’ve had to have been executed in April, months prior to Sept. 11, 2001.
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Because he was in the National Guard, he wouldn't be getting a retirement until he reached age 60. It is very common for NG and Reserve component members to stay in the service until well into their 50's and even to age 60. So, it is possible he reenlisted after 9/11 since most enlistment contracts after the initial one of 6 or more recently 8 years is for a 4 year period.
 
T. A. Gardner said:
Because he was in the National Guard, he wouldn't be getting a retirement until he reached age 60. It is very common for NG and Reserve component members to stay in the service until well into their 50's and even to age 60. So, it is possible he reenlisted after 9/11 since most enlistment contracts after the initial one of 6 or more recently 8 years is for a 4 year period.
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Walz retired two months before his unit went for a deployment to Iraq in 2005


there is no evidence he filed paperwork quit/retired in April of 2001 and than reenlisted
 
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ExpressLane said:
Biden feigned asthma to avoid the draft. Thank God he could continue to play football. Trump's remark about McCain was made in anger. It was a dumb thing to say. McCain however gave as good as he got. He said unkind things about Trump. But I agree McCain served honorably.
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Fun fact: I didn't vote for Biden, and won't vote for him in November.

I actually don't really care that Trump got 4 deferments. I just find it ironic that Trump's supporters would want to try to find something to make hay out of in Walz's 24 years of service to this country, which were served HONORABLY.

The remark about McCain may have been made in anger, but the added "I like the guys who weren't captured" was a stunningly offensive comment to not just people who actually put themselves in harm's way from someone who didn't, but people who had to endure what were often horrible, unimaginable circumstances as part of that service. They deserve nothing but gratitude.

And it wasn't a one-off. Trump has had a pattern of disparaging our military.
 
martin said:
He even seems to "know" that the report Walz reenlisted "after" 9/11 means he would have had to reenlist "before" 9/11, in April specifically.
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Link to his reenlistment

He did retire after 24 years....no proof he retired and reenlisted for 4 years
 
BartenderElite said:
So, Trump gets 4 deferments (pretty questionably, based on the reporting), says a war hero isn't a war hero because he "likes the guys who weren't captured", allegedly calls those who died in war "suckers and losers," and says the Presidential Medal of Honor is better than the military Medal of Honor....and conservatives want to keep talking about things related to the military, and disparage a guy who served for over 2 decades?
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Their desperation is palpable and accelerating. They have no honor, no principles, no morals, no ethics, no patriotism, no integrity.
 
He was in the guard for 24 years. That is 2.5 decades longer than Trump served. You rightys are Swiftboating again. You have no shame. You will denigrate a person who served 24 yrs to help Mr. Bone Spurs. Who served more honorably, Trump or Walz? He left to run for Congress. He was still serving the nation. He is still doing it.
 
Nordberg said:
He was in the guard for 24 years. That is 2.5 decades longer than Trump served. You rightys are Swiftboating again. You have no shame. You will denigrate a person who served 24 yrs to help Mr. Bone Spurs. Who served more honorably, Trump or Walz? He left to run for Congress. He was still serving the nation. He is still doing it.
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Did he retire and reenlist for 4 years?
 
Nordberg said:
He was in the guard for 24 years. That is 2.5 decades longer than Trump served. You rightys are Swiftboating again. You have no shame. You will denigrate a person who served 24 yrs to help Mr. Bone Spurs. Who served more honorably, Trump or Walz? He left to run for Congress. He was still serving the nation. He is still doing it.
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If Walz just had not lied and inflated his service for political gain things would be fine. He did not have to retire to run for Congress other members of Congress have served in the NG and Congress. Tulsi Gabbard did in fact. She is a Lieutenant Colonel. Walz left TWO YEARS before his commitment was finished. Walz never finished the training to be a Command Sargent Major to that title was stripped from him BEFORE he retired.
 
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