There’s been a lot of discussion revolving around Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, Tim Walz, and Trump’s running mate, Senator JD Vance.
Most recently, John Kolb, the former battalion commander of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s unit in the Minnesota Army National Guard, has publicly criticized Walz over accusations of “stolen valor.” The controversy revolves around Walz’s claim to the rank of Command Sergeant Major, a title that has become a point of contention following his retirement from the Guard in 2005. Kolb’s pointed comments have reignited the debate, calling into question Walz’s military record and the legitimacy of his claims.
Kolb, who served as a lieutenant colonel of the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery from 2005 to 2007, shared his thoughts on social media, according to a report by the *Daily Mail*. In his post, Kolb expressed no regret over Walz’s early retirement from the National Guard, emphasizing that Walz’s departure “got out of the way for better leadership.” He further criticized Walz for not completing the Sergeants Major Academy, an essential step for maintaining the rank of Command Sergeant Major, and for allegedly misrepresenting his military service.
Walz, who served in the same battalion until his retirement in 2005, has faced growing scrutiny for continuing to identify as a “retired Command Sergeant Major.” While Walz did achieve the rank before his retirement, his rank was later reduced to Master Sergeant because he did not complete the required coursework at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy. Despite this, the title of “retired Command Sergeant Major” was used in promotional materials by Vice President Kamala Harris’s campaign until recent updates corrected the title to “served as a command sergeant major.”
Kolb’s criticisms did not stop at Walz’s rank. He also questioned Walz’s leadership capabilities, stating that while Walz was a competent Chief of Firing Battery/Gunnery Sergeant and First Sergeant, he did not earn the Command Sergeant Major rank nor successfully complete any assignment at that level. “It is an affront to the Noncommissioned Officer Corps that he continues to glom onto the title,” Kolb wrote, drawing a stark analogy: “I can sit in the cockpit of an airplane, it does not make me a pilot.”
Kolb’s comments reflect the details surrounding Walz’s decisions. For example, the Harris campaign has said that Walz’s rank were reduced to Master Sergeant because he didn’t complete Sergeant Major school (CSM). Which is true but not the whole truth.
Being a CSM is a several-year commitment, meaning Walz knew exactly what he was getting into. However, when it was time to go to war, he bolted and somehow got out of his contract.
Which is why years later he was knocked down to Master Sergeant, he didn’t mee the requirements as the Harris campaign stated.
However what they haven’t explained is: 1. Why was Walz using the CSM insignia on his challenge coin while in Congress? 2. How the heck did he get out of his contract without any repercussions?
This makes Walz look poorly so what do some devious people on Wikipedia do? Earse Vance’s achievements.
They scrubbed Vance’s awards:
Wikipedia editors are trying to find a way under the rules to add a hoax to his bio. pic.twitter.com/Z37Kvym911
— Cernovich (@Cernovich) August 12, 2024
FYI, we did verify this, and the “edits” are still public on the Wikipedia page, so you can see them for yourself.
Here’s the version before it was edited in July 2024: https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=JD_Vance&oldid=1236670337
Here’s the newest: https://web.archive.org/web/20240716064459/https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J._D._Vance
Note the newest version (as of the writing of this post) awards section on the right hand side is smaller.
If you check and it’s been reverted to old click here to go through the revision and edits: https://web.archive.org/web/20240715204004/https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=J._D._Vance&action=history
