ST PAUL, Minn. — Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic candidate for vice president, “misspoke” in a 2018 video about "weapons of war that I carried in war,” a Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson said Saturday.
Republicans, including the vice presidential nominee, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, began questioning Walz's military record after Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for president, named the governor as her running mate on Tuesday.
Some of the criticism centers on comments by Walz in a 2018 video circulated on social media by the Harris campaign in which he speaks out against gun violence and says, “We can make sure that those weapons of war, that I carried in war, is the only place where those weapons are at.” The comment suggests that Walz portrayed himself as someone who spent time in a combat zone.
Walz served 24 years in various Army National Guard units but never served in a combat zone.
Lauren Hitt, a spokesperson for the Harris-Walz campaign, said Saturday in a statement that Walz misspoke in the 2018 video.
“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,” Hitt said.
“In making the case for why weapons of war should never be on our streets or in our classrooms, the Governor misspoke," Hitt added. "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.”
Vance enlisted in the Marine Corps after graduating high school, serving four years as a combat correspondent, similar to a military journalist, and deploying to Iraq in that capacity in 2005.