Team Kamala is forced to admit VP pick Tim Walz LIED about fighting in a war
The Kamala Harris campaign has been forced to admit Vice Presidential candidate Tim Walz lied about fighting in a war - just days after the campaign inadvertently drew attention to his false statements.
Walz referenced his 24 years in the Army National Guard during a political event in 2018 while explaining his support for gun legislation like background checks and restrictions on high-powered firearms.
'We can make sure that those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at,' Walz said in the clip, which was filmed when he represented Minnesota in the House of Representatives.
The Harris campaign shared the footage Tuesday on social media in an attempt to illustrate the Minnesota governor's views on gun control.
The Minnesota governor had deployed in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks as part of Operating Enduring Freedom - but never saw combat.
During a political event in 2018, Walz suggested he served in war as he showed support for gun legislation like background checks and restrictions on high-powered firearms
The claim drew the ire of some top Republicans, including former President Donald Trump's running mate, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, who accused Walz of 'stolen valor.'
'What bothers me about Tim Walz is this stolen valor garbage,' he said at a campaign event in Michigan this week. 'Do not pretend to be something that you're not.
'I'd be ashamed if I was him and I lied about my military service like he did.'
A Trump surrogate also hit out at Walz for the claims.
'Tim Walz is a fraud who wants to ban firearms like the ones he claimed to carry in war - except Tim Walz never deployed to a combat zone and lied about his record of service in the National Guard,' spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt told NBC News.
'If Walz won't tell voters the truth, we will: Just like Kamala Harris, Tim Walz is a dangerously liberal extremist, and the Harris-Walz California dream is every American's nightmare.'
The Harris campaign now says that the Minnesota governor simply misspoke - and did not try to lie to anyone about his military service.
The Harris campaign now says that the Minnesota governor simply misspoke - and did not try to lie to anyone about his military service
'Gov. Walz would never insult or undermine any American's service to this country - in fact, he thanks Sen. Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. It's the American way,' Lauren Hitt, a spokeswoman for the Harris-Walz campaign said in a statement Saturday.
'In making the case for why weapons of war should never be on our streets or in our classrooms, the governor misspoke.
'He did handle weapons of war and believes strongly that only members trained to carry those deadly weapons should have access to them, unlike Donald Trump and JD Vance, who prioritize the gun lobby over our children.'
But Trump campaign spokesman Steven Cheung questioned, 'Why won't Tim Walz address his lies himself? Why does he need to send out lowly spokespeople to clean up his own mess.'
Walz is also facing scrutiny from Republicans who accuse him of quitting the Army National Guard two decades ago to avoid being deployed to Iraq
Meanwhile, Walz is also facing scrutiny from Republicans who accuse him of quitting the Army National Guard two decades ago to avoid being deployed to Iraq - claims made by two retired command sergeant majors during Walz's first campaign for governor in 2018.
Walz formally retired from the Minnesota National Guard in 2005, as he prepared to run for Congress.
Some Republican snow suggest he abandoned his team to pursue the campaign.
In fact, as he prepared for the Congressional run in 2005, Walz's campaign issued a statement saying he planned to run despite a possible mobilization of Minnesota National Guard soldiers to Iraq.
According to the National Guard, he retired from service in May of that year, and his unit was deployed in August.
There is no evidence that Walz timed his departure with the intent of avoiding deployment, but Vance has seized on the issue.
Walz formally retired from the Minnesota National Guard in 2005, as he prepared to run for Congress
Walz has faced such attacks before, including in his re-election campaign in 2022 - when his Republican opponent questioned his decision to leave the service
'When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, do you know what he did? He dropped out of the Army and allowed his unit to go without him - a fact that he's been criticized for aggressively by a lot of the people that he served with,' the vice presidential candidate said at a news conference on Wednesday.
'I think it's shameful to prepare your unit to go to Iraq, to make a promise that you're going to follow through, and then to drop out right before you actually have to go.'
Walz has faced such attacks before, including in his re-election campaign in 2022 - when his Republican opponent questioned his decision to leave the service.
Walz's campaign responded with a letter signed by 50 veterans praising his leadership on veterans' issues in politics - a tactic the Harris campaign is now trying to reproduce.
Some of the criticism has drawn comparisons to critiques John Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, faced when he ran for the nation's highest office
The Harris campaign is trying to tout Walz's efforts to help veterans as a politician
Some of the criticism has drawn comparisons to critiques John Kerry, the 2004 Democratic presidential nominee, faced when he ran for the nation's highest office.
Kerry - who was awarded a Silver Star, a Bronze Star and, for wounds he sustained in battle, three Purple Heart medals - drew the ire of many veterans for his advocacy against the Vietnam War after he returned home.
When he ran for president, Swift Boat Veterans for Truth ran ads accusing him of lying about his service on 50-foot aluminum crafts that ran dangerous missions in the Mekong Delta waterways of South Vietnam.
Some of the veterans featured in the ads even said he won the awards under false pretenses.
But the Wall Street Journal editorial board has said the comparisons between Walz and Kerry were 'far different' - noting that Walz has emphasized several times that he did not serve in combat.
During a CNN interview last month - when anchor Jake Tapper said that Walz deployed to Afghanistan - Walz corrected him and said he served in Europe as the Iraq War was going on.
In a 2018 interview with Minnesota Public Radio, Walz also said of his military career: 'I know that there are certainly folks that did far more than I did.'
