President Donald Trump announced plans to nominate an Idaho resident to be the U.S. Air Force’s second in command.
“I am pleased to announce that Lieutenant Colonel Matthew Lohmeier will be the next United States Under Secretary of the Air Force,” Trump wrote on social media Friday.
As undersecretary, Lohmeier would be the No. 2-ranked civilian and the deputy to Trump’s Air Force Secretary nominee, Troy Meink.
Lohmeier joined the Air Force in 2006 and became an instructor pilot after graduating from the Air Force Academy, according to a biography on Congress’ website. He transferred to the Space Force in October 2020 and soon after took command of the 11th Space Warning Squadron, which provides missile warning and tracking worldwide, according to the Air Force Times.
The squadron is located at Buckley Space Force Base in Aurora, Colorado, just outside of Denver.
Lohmeier’s Facebook page says he lives in Boise, though he is originally from Tucson, Arizona. His website says he “lives with his wife and children in Idaho.”
He first gained national attention in 2021 after self-publishing a book purporting that Marxist ideology had become widespread within the United States military. The book also criticized claims of white supremacy within the military, ideas about systemic racism, the Black Lives Matter movement and diversity initiatives.
Soon after, officials fired Lohmeier from his Space Force command position for comments made while promoting the book on conservative podcasts.
“This decision was based on public comments made by Lt. Col. Lohmeier in a recent podcast,” a Space Force spokesperson told Military.com. “Lt. Gen. Whiting has initiated a Command Directed Investigation on whether these comments constituted prohibited partisan political activity.”
The Air Force Office of Inspector General began investigating Lohmeier but dropped the inquiry after he voluntarily left active duty, according to The Air Force Times and Lohmeier’s website.
It would appear that Lohmeier’s political ideology is exactly what earned him Trump’s nomination. “Matthew will work with the GREAT Secretary of Defense Nominee, Pete Hegseth, to end the devastating ‘woke’ policies that have destroyed our Military, and make our Country STRONG AGAIN.”
The Idahoan thanked Trump in a social media post, saying he was “very much looking forward to continuing (his) service to our great men and women in uniform.”
The Senate will need to approve Lohmeier’s nomination.
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