The U.S. Army, alerted that the command sergeant major of U.S. Military Academy, West Point reportedly violated the Uniform Code of Military Justice (UCMJ) by tweeting criticism of former President Donald Trump — and also targeted Republican Texas Sen. Ted Cruz, former White House Press Secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders, and Ohio GOP Rep. Jim Jordan — has commenced an investigation.
According to the Daily Caller, an Army official confirmed that an investigation has been launched into the actions of Sergeant Maj. Michael J. Coffey, who has served as command sergeant major at West Point since 2020.
“In response to a tweet from Vice President Kamala Harris, a Twitter account with the handle @mjcoff02 going by ‘Michael J.’ posted, ‘As a service member with 28 years active duty and multiple combat deployments, I spent every day wondering what my Commander in Chief would do to me and my unit. I have not slept well for the last 4 years. I’m sleeping soundly tonight,’” the Daily Caller noted.
One recent tweet from the handle @mjcoff02 was a reply to Secretary of State Mike Pompeo’s tweet in which four Iranian leaders were pictured, including Ayatollah Khamenei, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani, Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif, Brigadier Gen. Esmail Ghani, the man who replaced terrorist master Qassem Soleimani as leader of the Quds force. Pompeo tweeted, “Let’s talk Iran. The men in these photos threaten America and Israel nearly every day.”
The @mjcoff02 account responded, “Add Trump to the photo and then it’ll be correct.”
The Daily Caller reported that a Twitter user conducted a lengthy conversation with the @mjcoff02 account, “identifying him multiple times as former command sergeant major of the Army’s Third Infantry Division (3rd ID) and as current senior enlisted at West Point. Shortly following the identifying tweets, ‘Michael J.’ deleted his account.”
Army Lt. Col. Christopher Ophardt, Director of Public Affairs and Communications at the U.S. Military Academy, informed the Daily Caller, “West Point takes all allegations of impropriety seriously and will conduct a thorough investigation into this matter.”
In a profile of Coffey published on the U.S. Army website in September 2020, Coffey stated, “I believe in doing the right things the right way. If you communicate, if you’re present and you’re a team player, you can get through almost anything and you will be a valued member of the team. … We have to make sure that everyone is a part of a squad, that they are not alone and that someone is there for them. This is a crucial element on how we combat racism, extremism, sexual harassment, assault and suicide.”
“Everyone who steps foot on West Point who has anything to do with anything here, I consider that part of my responsibility,” Coffey continued. “I also have an inherent responsibility for the professional development of noncommissioned officers to help with the management of enlisted Soldiers. I am also always responsible for the members of my squad which includes the Supe, the Chief, the XO, aides, civilian secretaries, etc. … What I’m really armed with now is greater empathy of what our Soldiers are going through during COVID. A Soldier will not have to convince me about their issues because I have been through it. The truest power of the noncommissioned officer is that we have the experience. We’ve been through it all.”