Carlson acknowledged that things were suddenly different for him and his family in 2001, following the 9/11 attacks.

“The game changed for all of us when the deployments began,” he said. “While deployed to Kosovo, I was selected to become an Army Warrant Officer, and in 2003, I was promoted to Warrant Officer 1 and began one of which would be many rotations in and out of combat theaters in Iraq and Afghanistan.”

“Warrant officers are highly skilled, single-track specialty officers,” he said. “While the ranks are authorized by Congress, each branch of the uniformed services selects, manages, and uses warrant officers in slightly different ways. For appointment to the rank of warrant officer one (WO1), normally a warrant is approved by the secretary of the respective service. However, appointment to this rank can come via commission by the service secretary, the department secretary, or by the president, but this is less common. For the chief warrant officer ranks (CW2 to CW5), these warrant officers are commissioned by the president.”

Carlson took a deep breath and paused, and said, “I have been fortunate to serve in many positions and lead America’s finest around the globe, from training in the U.S., to the deserts of Iraq, the mountains of Afghanistan, the streets of Kosovo, to the skies of Fort Bragg, and countless places in between. It was an honor to have been given opportunities to brief presidents, interact with senior corporate enterprises, and serve on high-level staffs like U.S. European Command, NORAD, and U.S. Northern Command.”