Moore Provides Military Service Documentation, Refutes Attacks
Moore campaign rebuts attacks on service, Veteran status with new video; calls attacks “garbage swamp tactics,” praises AL National Guards service
In a campaign press release dated June 9, U.S. Senate Candidate Barry Moore responds to recent attacks on his record of military service and Veteran status from his runoff opponent, Jared Hudson.
The campaign statement provides documentation of Moore’s six-plus years of service in the National Guard and Army Reserves. In an accompanying video, Moore calls the attacks by the Hudson campaign “garbage swamp tactics“ and praises Alabama’s 30,000 National Guards for their service, calling them Veterans as well.
The following material is reproduced exactly as provided to ALPolitics.com by the Moore campaign, and the video is attached below:
Congressman Moore’s Service
Q: Did he serve six years?
Over six years of military service — in the Alabama National Guard from 1988 to 1991, and then in the U.S. Army Reserve until 1997, when Barry received an honorable discharge as documented in NGB Form 22.
Q: But he said “six years in the National Guard” on the radio recently. The records show about two and a half years in the Guard.
His service was over six years, in the Guard and then the Reserve. He described it as his Guard service as shorthand, the full picture is Guard service followed by Reserve service — and it’s all documented.
Q: Did he claim to be a Staff Sergeant? Did he retire as one?
His pay grade was E-6 Staff Sergeant, as shown on his discharge order. You will see his name, followed by his SSN and rank. At the time of separation, he was an officer candidate serving at the E-6 grade, as documented on his NGB Form 22. Barry has never called himself a retired Staff Sergeant, or even a Staff Sergeant nor did he retire from service — he was honorably discharged.
Q: The 2024 letter about Tim Walz lists him as “Staff Sergeant — Army National Guard (Ret.).” How do you explain that?
That was a coalition letter signed by a lot of people, and the Staff Sergeant and retired title line was supplied by its organizers. He has never used that title and never affirmed it. His grade was E-6 and he was discharged as a Staff Sergeant. If the opposition has proof that he ever referred to himself as a retired Staff Sergeant, I’d encourage them to produce it. The discrepancy is with 3rd party misrepresentations of his record and how others described them in a write up that botched the grade and rank and a letter others drafted.
Q: Is he a veteran?
Yes. The Department of Veterans Affairs issued him a Veteran Identification Card based on his service. The VA settled that question years ago.
Q: Did he ever serve on active duty?
Yes — on active duty for basic training, March through May of 1989.
Q: Did he deploy? See combat?
No, and he never claimed otherwise. His unit was preparing for a possible Operation Desert Storm deployment — he was even fitted for gas masks — but the war ended before he deployed. He has always told that story straight.
Q: Why did he say he wore combat boots in a 2020 ad?
Members of the National Guard wear combat boots to train. Here is a link to the shoe.
Q: Records show he left after about 31 months to take a civilian job, without finishing his commitment.
That’s not what happened. He didn’t leave the military in 1991 — he transferred to the U.S. Army Reserve and completed his service obligation through 1997. The VA’s own service record shows it.
Q: Isn’t this the same thing he accused Tim Walz of — claiming a title you didn’t earn?
No. He stated his grade accurately as E-6, he never claimed a title he didn’t hold, and he never claimed combat or a deployment he didn’t have. That’s the difference.
Q: Why doesn’t he release his DD214?
We’ve already provided the documented facts and military records — enlistment and discharge dates, active-duty dates, grade, and his VA Veteran ID to the media. A DD214 covers active duty service, and he, like many members of the Guard, doesn’t have one because he was only on active duty during basic training (See here: only in 2022 did it become a requirement for members of the Guard to get a DD214). Jared Hudson, who knows exactly how military records work, should know that guardsmen who served basic training and never deployed prior to 2022 don’t get a DD-214, but they get an NGB-22 which Barry has provided. Jared is deliberately attempting to mislead voters demanding documentation that doesn’t exist. What’s really happening here isn’t about the release of records, it’s a political attack meant to discredit honorable service and diminish the commitment of thousands of Guardsmen and Reservists who answered the call to serve their country.
