JD Vance's military record comes under scrutiny after Tim Walz attack (2024)

Ohio Senator JD Vance is being attacked for his military record after he criticized that of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, the recently announced running mate of Vice President Kamala Harris.

Speaking to reporters in Michigan on Wednesday, Donald Trump's running mate accused Walz of "stolen valor," of having "lied" about serving in a war and of "abandoning" his unit.

Walz, who spent 24 years in the National Guard, left in 2005 months before the battalion he led was notified that it would to be deployed to Iraq. Vance also appeared to reference previous comments from Walz in which the governor said, "We can make sure that those weapons of war, that I carried in war, is the only place where those weapons were at."

"Well, I wonder Tim Walz, when were you ever in war?" Vance said. "What was this weapon that you carried into war given that you abandoned your unit right before they went to Iraq, and he has not spent a day in a combat zone?"

Vance himself served in the Marine Corps for four years, and he also never saw combat. He worked as a combat correspondent in Iraq between August 2005 and February 2006. The senator has now been widely condemned for attacking Walz's military record as his own background is scrutinized.

Alexander Vindman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "Vance enlisted & served 4 yrs, including 6 months in Iraq in 2005 as a reporter w/ a Public Affairs section of a Marine Aircraft Wing.

"Walz served 24 yrs earning 8 promotions & ending as a Command Sergeant Major, the highest NCO position. I don't think JD wants to compare records but if he insists."

Jake Broe, a U.S. Air Force veteran who served as a nuclear and missile operations officer, wrote: "Tim Walz retired from military service after 25 years of honorable service. He retired an E-9 Command Sergeant Major. JD Vance went to Iraq for six months and wrote press releases from an air conditioned office."

Adam Kinzinger, a former Republican congressman who served in the Air Force, said while sharing Vance's comments on Walz: "OK. JD served honorably, but he wasn't kicking down doors. He was in public affairs.

"Which again, is fine and honorable. Tim, after he was eligible for retirement, retired. People do that. If it was a real problem he would have been 'stop lossed' and prevented from retiring."

Navy veteran Jax Persists added: "Vance served 4 years and spent 6 months in Iraq escorting civilian press and writing stories. Walz served 24 years and retired when he ran for office."

Newsweek has contacted Vance's office for comment via email.

Vance has said he never saw real combat during his time in the Marine Corps, and he wrote about his experiences in his bestselling memoirs Hillbilly Elegy.

"As a public affairs marine, I would attach to different units to get a sense of their daily routine," Vance wrote. "Sometimes I'd escort civilian press, but generally I'd take photos or write short stories about individual marines or their work."

Luis Agostini, a combat veteran and public information officer for the Drug Enforcement Administration's Chicago field division, defended those who work in military public affairs and dismissed those who suggest it amounts to a "cushy" public relations job where "combat is avoided and A/C is enjoyed."

In a series of posts on X, Agostini paid tribute to those who have been killed while working such jobs during wartime.

"There are also the invisible injuries suffered by combat correspondents, photographers and videographers that weigh heavily long after the deployment, as with so many others in different fields," he wrote.

CNN's Brianna Keilar suggested that Vance was an "imperfect messenger" to attack Walz's military history given the senator also never saw combat and was more of a "public affairs specialist."

In reply, Vance wrote on X: "It's easy to sit in the comfort and safety of a CNN studio and trivialize the service of countless men and women who risked their lives.

"I served with some of the people mentioned in this thread. I miss them all very much. Shameful of Keilar to slander an entire [military occupational specialty]."

Luke Schroeder, a spokesperson for Vance, previously told Newsweek: "Tim Walz lied about carrying a weapon in a war and abandoned his unit as they prepared to actually deploy for war—he said he would answer the call, but when the call came, he ran for office instead.

"There's nothing more insulting to veterans who do answer the call to serve in a combat zone like Senator Vance did than those who engage in stolen valor to benefit their political career—which is exactly what Walz appears to have done."

Correction 8/9/2024 at 11:20 a.m. ET: This story was corrected to show that Luis Agostini was not defending a specific candidate.