Former President Donald Trump on Wednesday claimed he had the endorsement of Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz's estranged brother, as well as support from other members of the Walz family.
“It's a great honor to be here today,” Trump told Fox News host Sean Hannity at a town hall event in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania.
“His brother endorsed me,” the former president continued, referring to Jeff Waltz, the brother of Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate.
“And his whole family [endorsed me]The typically hyperbolic Trump added: “I've seen the pictures and, frankly, they're a lovely family.”
But Jeff Waltz has previously said he has no plans to support Trump, despite publicly criticizing his brother.
The Republican candidate was referring to a photo that went viral on social media that purportedly shows eight members of Tim Walz's family wearing navy blue “Nebraska Walz Supports Trump” T-shirts and posing in front of a “Trump 2024: Take America Back” flag.
A political activist who helped spread the image told The Washington Post that the people in the image are related to Waltz through his paternal great-uncle, but declined to be identified, saying they were overwhelmed by the attention.
Meanwhile, the Minnesota governor's brother, 67-year-old Jeff Walz, sparked a social media uproar when he declared in an Aug. 30 Facebook post that he was “100% opposed” to his brother's “ideology.”
“The story I can tell is I'm not the type of person I want making decisions about my future,” Jeff Waltz added.
He also said he had “thought long and hard” about supporting Trump, but was “torn between doing it and not getting my family involved.”
Jeff Waltz said in a recent interview with News Nation that he hasn't spoken to his brother since 2016, except for a “two-minute conversation” during the vice presidential vetting process.
In the interview, Jeff Waltz suggested he has no plans to campaign with or endorse the former president.
“We will not be making any further statements to anyone and we are not campaigning for or against him or anything like that,” he said.
The Washington Post has reached out to the Trump campaign for comment.
Tim Walz, 60, is credited with promoting the notion that President Trump and his Republican running mate, J.D. Vance, are “nuts,” an attack that has been hurled at many on the left since the Ohio senator became a presidential candidate.
Trump, 78, claimed Wednesday that Walz was the “wacko.”
“There's something weird about that guy,” he said of Waltz. “A weird guy. J.D. isn't weird. He's a solid rock. And I happen to be a very solid rock, too.”
“We're not weirdos. We might be something else, but we're not weirdos,” Trump added. “There's something wrong with that guy. That's why they call me weird.”
During the town hall, Hannity noted that Fox News had organized the event with the aim of hosting a debate between Harris and President Trump, but the vice president declined to participate.
The crowd was loud and enthusiastic, with chants of “USA, USA” and “Fight” erupting frequently throughout the match.
Pennsylvania, a key battleground state that could determine the outcome of the 2024 presidential election, will have its 19 electoral votes at stake in November.
The race in the Keystone State is essentially tied as of about two months before Election Day, according to several polls.
