US army suspends commander after Trump and Hegseth portraits flipped to face wall

[Lulu KC]

https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/apr/24/army-suspends-commander-trump-hegseth-portraits

The army has suspended a Wisconsin training base’s first female commander after discovering portraits of Donald Trump and Pete Hegseth had been flipped around to face a wall.

The army has posted an undated statement on Fort McCoy’s website saying Col Sheyla Baez Ramirez has been suspended as the base’s garrison commander. The statement said the suspension isn’t related to any misconduct, but provided no other details, saying the matter was under review.

The Department of Defense on 14 April posted photos on X showing portraits of the president and defense secretary on the base’s chain of command wall had been turned to face the wall, along with photos showing that they had been flipped back to face the corridor.

###

Baez Ramirez assumed the role of garrison commander at Fort McCoy in July 2024 after serving as chief of the Reserve Program, US army intelligence and security command at Fort Belvoir, Virginia. She was commissioned as a military intelligence officer through the Reserve Officer Training Corps in 1999 and holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology/mental health from the University of Puerto Rico and a master’s in strategic studies from the Army War College in Carlisle, Pennsylvania.

[PittBlue]

1. Oh, my...

They will probably put her in front of a firing squad.

[BoRaGard]

2. So I suppose the republicon Draft-Dodger-in-Chief feels she's

NOT a "sucker and a loser" like all the other veterans and active duty soldiers he insulted.

Special.

[dutch777]

3. Don't suppose tthe fact that she is a she and has a foreign sounding name had anything to do with it?

It would be interesting to know what impact Trump being in power has on recruitment of women and people of color for the military. Even as a white male, I would be reticent now to sign up (again) just because I would not trust Trump to not casually or stupidly put me in harm's way for no good reason and without any kind of sensible plan. I really pity folks serving now under this low life CIC.

[yardwork]

35. It sounds like a right-wing underling did this just to get her fired.

Sabotage.

[Wonder Why]

4. She should not have done that. She should have just moved the pictures to the NCO Club

Dart Board area.

[mwmisses4289]

5. 😆👍

[Meowmee]

24. 😹

[riversedge]

26. The darts would be repelled!!

[stillcool]

27. according to the article in the OP

she did not do it. Not that it matters.

[benfranklin1776]

32. Or the latrine.

Where they would receive their proper treatment on a daily basis by all those who are now recklessly endangered by this triumvirate of treason.🤬

[Mossfern]

6. She is my hero!

[Prairie Gates]

7. Let's be honest: that would get anybody shitcanned regardless of President

And if somebody did it to Obama, there would be at least grumbling here, if not outrage.

It was a dumb thing to do.

[CoopersDad]

15. She didn't do it.

She didn't flip the portraits; either an underling or a MAGA more likely did this.

[yardwork]

37. This was done to get rid of her.

The article said she didn't do it.

[spanone]

8. Snowflakes. Thank you Col Sheyla Baez Ramirez.

[Dave Bowman]

9. A picture of Shady was also flipped to face the wall. 👍

[Hugin]

10. Is any proof provided that COL Ramirez was the person who flipped the photographs?

Or are we again skipping due process?

[Lulu KC]

12. I thought the same thing

I figure that's why they're investigating, but the buck stops with her so she's suspended while they figure it out (if they can).

[Hugin]

13. It's funny how the Buck never seems to stop at the C-in-C.

Right?

[Lulu KC]

14. Ain't that the truth

The bucks just go flying in and out, never stopping, never being acknowledged. Chaos.

[Quiet Em]

17. Nope.

Baez Ramirez was suspended less than a week after the Defense Department said it would investigate photographs shared on social media that purportedly showed a leadership board at Fort McCoy that conspicuously did not have pictures of President Donald Trump, Vice President JD Vance, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth. A chorus of unsourced social media accounts claimed the board’s missing photos were intentional under Baez Ramirez.

But Army officials did not connect the missing photos to Baez Ramirez’s removal, and such boards are ubiquitous on all military installations. They present a visual key to a unit’s or ship’s chain of command, from the president’s role as commander-in-chief down to the ranking officials in the building or unit where the board is hung. A large base might have dozens or more similar displays throughout its buildings.

However, in an earlier statement, Army Reserve officials appeared to confirm that Baez Ramirez had no role in the missing pictures and had taken steps to restore them.

https://taskandpurpose.com/news/army-mccoy-suspended/

[Kid Berwyn]

11. The relieved CO did not "turn" the photos.

The culprit is some MAGA turd who Tommy Tuberville likes.

[lindysalsagal]

16. She deserves a promotion for getting it into the news.

National hero.

[bronxiteforever]

18. Hero

[AverageOldGuy]

19. She was relieved because the Army regulation

that governs command states: “The commander is responsible for all his unit does or fails to do.”

[SpankMe]

20. The portrait thing is just an excuse to purge another female person of color from leadership. n/t

[IronLionZion]

21. Time to start flying the US flag upside down

since our country is in distress

[azureblue]

22. I guess the brass forgot

the oath that every service person takes, to defend the Constitution from all enemies, both foreign and domestic. Not only did they over -react by suspending her, they showed their alignment with a person who tried to overthrow the government

[Marvin Jones]

23. Interior Decoration

That is not the only place where the Chief Traitor's picture has been turned to the wall.

[barbtries]

25. what I like about this

is that it gives me hope that the military will honor their oath and not those freaks.

[riversedge]

30. Trump is the big boss of the military and he will get his revenge IMHO.

[Lulu KC]

31. Same here

I hope it is just a person who couldn't take it anymore, not a plant from The Other Side. Holding out hope. AND that she has a super-lawyer if they don't un-suspend her immediately.

[AllyCat]

28. Loyalty must be pledged by all

Or your job is gone. I hate this timeline.

[live love laugh]

29. They'll "deport" her first chance they get.

[republianmushroom]

33. Should be promoted.

[CTyankee]

34. Even if she didn't flip the portraits, isn't the action similar to flag burning? Wasn't that considered speech under the

First Amendment and ruled so by the Supreme Court?

[ForgedCrank]

36. I have to wonder

if they know who actually did it or if it is even related to this incident. The article doesn't specifically say and the statement reads that it "isn’t related to any misconduct". Nor does it say who initiated the suspension. I'm not the trusting type, especially when it comes to modern media.
As far as the photo thing goes, active service is no place for politics in any form. I hope they find out who did it because it is not appropriate regardless of how we feel about the assholes in charge.