Army Suspends Female Commander After Trump Portrait Found Flipped Around

The Army suspended a female commander stationed in Wisconsin after portraits of President Trump and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth were found flipped around. The Army now says the suspension was not related to the incident.

The Army said in a statement Saturday that Col. Sheyla Baez Ramirez, the base’s first female commander, had been “suspended” as Garrison Commander at Fort McCoy, Wis.

On April 14, the Department of Defense shared a post on the social platform X showcasing a photo of the wall of the chain of command where Trump, Hegseth and Vice President Vance’s photos were turned around to face a wall. 

“Regarding the Ft. McCoy Chain of Command wall controversy….WE FIXED IT,” the account wrote, adding that “an investigation has begun to figure out exactly what happened.”

Then, over the weekend, the defense secretary reposted an X post that said, “Commander of Fort McCoy, whose base chain-of-command board was missing photos of Trump, Vance and Hegseth, has been SUSPENDED.”

The U.S. Army Reserve spokesperson told The Hill on Wednesday that Baez Ramirez was suspended on April 18, Friday, for “administrative reasons,” not for “misconduct.” 

The investigation into the leader board “incident” is ongoing. 

“To reiterate, no one on the Fort McCoy leadership team, which includes Col. Baez-Ramirez, directed or supported the removal of any leader portraits,” the spokesperson wrote in an emailed statement. “The Leader Board was corrected upon notification of the issue.” 

Baez Ramirez assumed duties as Garrison Commander at Fort McCoy in July last year. Previously, she served as the chief of the Reserve Program, Army Intelligence and Security Command at Fort Belvoir, Va., according to her Army page. 

Baez Ramirez was commissioned as a military intelligence officer in 1999. She has 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.

Updated at 5:17 p.m. ET.