A spokesman for the Kamala Harris presidential campaign told the Washington Post Friday that running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz (D) “misspoke” when he said in a video posted by the campaign that he had carried weapons in war.
Walz served twenty-four years in the Army National Guard without ever serving in a combat zone. Walz retired in 2005, months before his unit was ordered to Iraq so he could run for Congress, leading to accusations he quit on his men knowing they were likely to be deployed to a war zone.
This is the second time this week since naming Walz as the Democrats’ new vice presidential pick that the Harris campaign has had to clean up for Walz lying about his service. Previously the campaign made a stealth edit to Walz’s about page regarding his false claim to have retired at the rank of command sergeant major.
In the video posted Tuesday, the day Harris announced Walz as her vice presidential pick, the campaign quoted Walz saying: “I spent 25 years in the Army and I hunt. I’ve been voting for common sense legislation that protects the Second Amendment, but we can do background checks. We can research the impacts of gun violence. We can make sure those weapons of war, that I carried in war, are only carried in war.”
As of Friday evening the Harris campaign video with the false claim of combat service by Walz was still posted.
Gov. @Tim_Walz: I spent 25 years in the Army and I hunt. I’ve been voting for common sense legislation that protects the Second Amendment, but we can do background checks. We can research the impacts of gun violence. We can make sure those weapons of war, that I carried in war,… pic.twitter.com/3IVaXi2RP2
— Kamala HQ (@KamalaHQ) August 6, 2024
A Harris-Walz campaign spokesman acknowledged for the first time Friday that Walz “misspoke” in 2018 when he explained his support for gun regulations by saying, “We can make sure that those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at.” That phrase led Vance and other Republicans this week to accuse Walz of falsely suggesting that he fought in combat.
“Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American’s service to this country — in fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. It’s the American way,” the spokesman, Ammar Moussa, said. “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 military 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.”
On the campaign trail, Harris stood by her new running mate, telling reporters Thursday, “I praise anyone who has presented themselves to serve our country, and I think that we all should.” The campaign quietly edited its online bio of Walz to replace “retired command sergeant major” with “retired sergeant major.”
Politico reported Thursday about the Harris campaign correcting Walz’s bio (excerpt):
Harris campaign tweaks Walz biography amid scrutiny of military credentials https://t.co/z6EWeObM5G
— POLITICO (@politico) August 8, 2024
Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign updated its online biography of running mate Tim Walz’s military service amid Republican efforts to question his record in the Army National Guard.
On its website, the Harris campaign axed a reference to Walz as a “retired command sergeant major” and now says that he once served at the command sergeant major rank — a small change that nonetheless reflects his true rank at retirement from the Army National Guard. Walz, the governor of Minnesota, served for 24 years in the National Guard before retiring in 2005 from the military to run for the U.S. House, where he became the most senior enlisted soldier to serve in Congress.
…Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign updated its online biography of running mate Tim Walz’s military service amid Republican efforts to question his record in the Army National Guard.
On its website, the Harris campaign axed a reference to Walz as a “retired command sergeant major” and now says that he once served at the command sergeant major rank — a small change that nonetheless reflects his true rank at retirement from the Army National Guard. Walz, the governor of Minnesota, served for 24 years in the National Guard before retiring in 2005 from the military to run for the U.S. House, where he became the most senior enlisted soldier to serve in Congress.
Walz has consistently misrepresented his service and has failed to correct the record when others in politics or the media falsely credit him with serving in combat.
A video from 2007 surfaced Friday of Walz not correcting then Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) when she called him command sergeant major and credited him with battlefield service. Also, C-SPAN falsely IDed Walz as an “Afghanistan War veteran”:
FLASHBACK: Tim Walz thanked Nancy Pelosi at a press conference in 2007 in which she said while introducing him that “we appreciate his service on the battlefield.”
CSPAN then identified Walz as an “Afghanistan veteran.” pic.twitter.com/6HaKNyfKsf
— Greg Price (@greg_price11) August 9, 2024
UPDATE: Harris dodged a question from a reporter Thursday about Walz, “Listen, I praise anyone who has presented themselves to serve our country. And I think that we all should.”
Kamala Harris on Donald Trump: “I’m glad that he’s finally agreed to a debate on September 10. I’m looking forward to it. And hope he shows up.”
– and –
“I’ve talked to my team. I want us to get an interview scheduled before the end of the month.” pic.twitter.com/NbixTWDGS3
— Howard Mortman (@HowardMortman) August 8, 2024
