Vice President Harris’ campaign has pushed back against criticism of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz’s military record, saying the vice presidential nominee was “incorrect” in saying in a video calling for gun control that he used a combat weapon while in the National Guard.
“Governor Walz would never disparage or undermine Americans’ service to this country. In fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country,” a spokesperson for the Harris-Walz campaign said in an emailed statement to The Hill.
“This is the American way,” the spokesperson continued. “The Governor misrepresented why weapons of war should not be on our streets or in our classrooms. He has handled weapons of war and firmly believes they should only be handled by military personnel trained to deliver those lethal weapons. [former President] Donald Trump and [Sen.] J.D. Vance [(R-Ohio)] These are people who put the gun lobby above our children.”
“I can ensure that the weapons of war that I carried in war are only carried in war,” Waltz said in the video.
The North Star State governor has come under intense attack from the right over his military record. Vance, a former Marine, has criticized Walz’s military record, accused Harris’ running mate of being “stolen” and noted that the North Star State Democrat left the military before deploying to Iraq.
“Tim Waltz, when did you go to war?” Vance, former President Trump’s running mate, said while campaigning in Michigan. “He’s never spent a day in a combat zone. I would be embarrassed if I were him and I lied about my military service like he did.”
Former Secretary of Defense Mark Esper, who served as Secretary of Defense under Trump, also pressed Walz to disclose his military history, but refrained from attacking the Minnesota governor.
“I think some of the attacks are unfounded,” Esper, who served under Trump, told CNN in an interview Friday afternoon. “I think some of them need to be clarified by Governor Walz. The governor should talk about that.”
“In my view, the fact that this has been going on for several days means that he should just come out and speak about the issues,” he said before his campaign released a rebuttal.
Walz and Vance are the first military veterans to feature prominently among national candidates since the late Sen. John McCain (R-Ariz.) ran for president in 2008, though neither of the running mates served in combat.
