Tornado Alley (PROG)

[blackhawks]

It’s unclear when Walz submitted his papers for retirement.

It IS clear that the submission of those retirement papers resulted in official retirement 2 months before an ALERT for a possible deployment. So it's not a lack of clarity rather a failure of analysis.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/elections/2024/08/07/tim-walz-military-record/

Joe Eustice, who served in the National Guard with Walz for at least a decade, said he vehemently disagrees with Walz’s politics but described him as a good soldier. In an interview, he rejected assertions that Walz avoided combat duty. In late spring 2005, when Walz said he wanted to pursue politics and decided to retire, there was only speculation of a combat deployment on the horizon, Eustice said.

“Other than having a rumor, we were not notified that we were going to be deployed,” Eustice said.

The unit received an official alert order two months after Walz had retired, the Minnesota National Guard said, which helped the unit prepare for mobilization later in the fall.

Walz, when asked by the Library of Congress historian about his retirement, said that he did so to run for Congress, adding that he was concerned about trying to serve in the military and run for office simultaneously. He also cited worries about the Hatch Act, which restricts partisan political activity by federal employees.