Army suspends commander after Trump, Vance, Hegseth vanish from command board
The commander of Fort McCoy was relieved of duty after the U.S. Army base failed to install photos of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on a wall displaying their chain of command.
Col. Sheyla Baez Ramirez was suspended as garrison commander of Ft. McCoy in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. “This suspension is not related to any misconduct,” the U.S. Army Reserve Command said in a statement, “We have no further details to provide at this time while this matter is under review.”
Hegseth on Sunday reposted an X post claiming: “Commander of Fort McCoy, whose base chain-of-command board was missing photos of Trump, Vance and Hegseth, has been SUSPENDED.”
It came after the Defense Department (DOD) announced a probe into why a wall displaying the chain of command had empty frames on the wall where Trump, Vance and Hegseth’s images would typically be displayed.
A new image they posted of the wall showed the frames had been filled.
“Regarding the Ft. McCoy Chain of Command wall controversy…. WE FIXED IT! Also, an investigation has begun to figure out exactly what happened,” the department’s rapid response account posted on X.
Ramirez assumed the garrison commander role in July of last year.
Previously, she had served as chief of the Reserve Program, United States Army Intelligence and Security Command at Fort Belvoir, Virginia, and in other roles throughout the Army and Army Reserves.
The move came after a series of leadership shake-ups across the U.S. military. Earlier this month, the Pentagon fired the base commander for Pituffik Space Force Base in Greenland after she “undermined” Vance.
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After the vice president’s visit, Col. Susannah Meyers emailed base personnel on March 31, writing, “I do not presume to understand current politics, but what I do know is the concerns of the U.S. administration discussed by Vice President Vance on Friday are not reflective of Pituffik Space Base.”
She added that she had “spent the weekend thinking about Friday’s visit — the actions taken, the words spoken, and how it must have affected each of you.”
The Space Force said in a public statement Meyers had been relieved of command “due to loss of confidence in her ability to lead.”
“Commanders are expected to adhere to the highest standards of conduct, especially as it relates to remaining nonpartisan in the performance of their duties,” the statement read.
And Hegseth fired four former aides after in-fighting and a leak investigation came to a head late last week.
The secretary blamed “disgruntled employees” for leaking reports about a second Signal chat that discussed Houthi strikes, this one including his wife, brother and personal lawyer on the chain.
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