The military has suspended a three-star general’s contract and investigated him after he posted a tweet that appeared to mock First Lady Jill Biden, USA Today reports.
The big picture: Retired Lieutenant General Gary Volesky, the former top military spokesman, responded to a tweet from Biden stating that women’s rights had been stolen in the Supreme Court’s decision to overturn Roe v. Wade.
- “For nearly 50 years, women have had the right to make our own decisions about our bodies. Today that right has been stolen from us,” Biden tweeted.
- “Glad to see you finally know what a woman is,” Volesky said.
Details: Lieutenant General Theodore Martin, commander of the Combined Arms Center, has suspended Volesky while the investigation is ongoing, Cynthia Smith, an army spokesman, told USA Today.
- Volesky, who was in charge of the Army’s 101st Airborne Division, had signed a contract after retiring to advise officers on active duty as senior mentors.
Between the lines: Volesky’s response is a violation of decency for a retired military officer, USA Today reported.
- It’s an unusual move in partisan politics by an official who pays the Pentagon, especially since the department tends to avoid such matters.
- Army General Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said it was a “mistake” to appear in Lafayette Square with then-President Trump in June 2020. “My presence at that time and in that environment created a picture of the military involved in domestic politics,” he said in a video message a few days later.
- After the January 6 uprising, Milley and the other Joint Chiefs sent a memo to remind the troops of their oath to the Constitution.
Looking back: Volesky responded to a tweet from Rep. Liz Cheney (R-Wyo.) when she announced that she would be on the select committee on Jan. 6 and that their “oath to the Constitution must trump partisan politics.”
- “This is all about party politics,” Volesky said.