After coming under fire for suggesting that Senator J.D. Vance, President Trump’s running mate, exaggerated his military service, CNN anchor Brianna Keilar appears to be walking back her criticism of the senator, insisting that he “served honorably.”
“Informed political and military observers, including myself, have noted the Trump campaign’s Swiftvoting of Tim Waltz, and the attacks on J.D. Vance’s military service are also nasty,” Keilar began in his monologue on Friday. “J.D. Vance served with honor in Iraq, a combat zone where anything can happen, and it happens often. As he writes in his book, he was ‘lucky to escape actual combat.’ That doesn’t make his service any less good; he says it was ‘lucky.’ And even in combat zones and training missions, luck often makes the difference. It just means today is not your day.”
“In a country where so few shoulder the burden, military service should be an asset, not a liability,” she continued. “And while our nation has been at war in recent years, many service members have never seen combat. That doesn’t make them or their service any less admirable or necessary. Nor should it make you retire from the National Guard after 24 years of service. These attacks from the left and right belittle the service of so many who sacrificed time with their families and put themselves at risk to serve honorably because our military is primarily made up of J.D. Vances and Tim Waltzes.”
Vance fires back at ‘nasty’ CNN anchor who suggested his military record was exaggerated during Waltz spat
CNN reporter Brianna Keilar told viewers that Sen. J.D. Vance (R-Ohio) “served honorably” after coming under fire for suggesting he exaggerated his military service. (Screenshot/CNN)
A liberal anchor marveled that there are two military veterans on the presidential ticket, something not seen in recent presidential elections.
“They have unique insight into what the men and women of the American military and their families go through and need, and shouldn’t that be the focus?” Keilar asked. “This is a presidential election to choose a commander in chief, and all too often the candidates and vice presidential candidates competing to make decisions that put people in harm’s way have never personally served in the role.”
“The fact that they are entering the military this year is important to a lot of people. It’s important to me, too. Our family is raising two sons who revere their father’s military service, and having a father serve in the military has made it much more likely that my two sons will do so,” she added. “And if they choose that path, it’s important that there’s someone at the table who knows what that sacrifice means.”
JD Vance accuses Tim Waltz of ‘lying’ about his military service: ‘Stolen military garbage’
Kilar speculated Thursday that Vance “may be an imperfect communicator” to criticize Walz.
“As you mentioned, we hired him as a combat correspondent, and that [Vance’s] “His title,” Keillor told CNN colleague Dana Bash, “but if you dig a little deeper, he’s a public relations professional who’s never been in combat. Certainly the title ‘combat correspondent’ carries some kind of different connotation, so maybe he’s an imperfect communicator in that respect.”
Vance criticized Keillor and CNN on social media.
“Brianna, this is horrible. You and your entire network should be ashamed of yourself,” Vance wrote on Twitter. “I got the call to go to Iraq and I went. Tim Walz said he had guns in the war. Did he really? No, that’s a lie.”
“I’ve served in combat zones. I’ve never said I actually saw a firefight, but I’ve always told the truth about my service in the Marine Corps. That’s the difference,” Vance told reporters on Wednesday.
CNN did not respond to an earlier request for comment from Fox News Digital.
Republican Senator J.D. Vance of Ohio blasted Keillor’s comments, calling them “nasty.” (AP Photo/CNN)
Critics have focused on an old video accidentally shared by the Harris campaign in which Walz, a gun control advocate, tells voters, “I can guarantee you that the weapons of war that I carried in war will not be anywhere else.”
Maj. Thomas Behrens, a former sergeant who said he was a member of Waltz’s battalion, slammed the governor’s comments.
“For most people, that would mean he actually participated in combat, carried a weapon in a combat zone, received combat pay and was under fire in a dangerous and hostile environment.” Berens told The Ingram Angle: on wednesday.
CNN fact-checks Tim Walz’s ‘completely false’ claim he carried weapons ‘during a war’
A CNN correspondent fact-checked Walz’s comments on Wednesday, asserting that “there is no evidence that Governor Walz was in a position to be shot at any time, and some of his comments could easily suggest that he was.”
Waltz has never been in a combat zone. He deployed to Italy on Aug. 3, 2003, in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, according to the Minnesota National Guard. The battalion supported security missions in various locations in Europe and Turkey, and Waltz was stationed in Vicenza, Italy, before returning to Minnesota in 2004, according to the Guard. He has never deployed to Iraq or Afghanistan.
Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, has faced intense scrutiny over his military record since becoming Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate. (Andrew Harnick/Getty Images)
Vance’s opponent has been at the center of controversy since becoming the Democratic nominee. Walz, who served in the Minnesota National Guard for 24 years, has repeatedly referred to himself as a “retired Army sergeant major,” which is inaccurate.
According to the Minnesota National Guard, Waltz served as a command sergeant but was “discharged as a sergeant for benefits purposes in 2005 after not completing additional coursework at the U.S. Army Sergeants Major Academy.”
On Thursday, the Harris campaign Changed the wording of Waltz’s biography After the uproar, they wrote on their website: Initially, the biography listed Waltz as a “retired master sergeant,” but it was later updated to say he “served as a master sergeant.”
Walz has also faced criticism over the timing of his retirement, amid allegations that he retired early to avoid a deployment to Iraq.
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“He was a great man,” said Tom Schilling, a veteran who served in the same battalion as Waltz. He “abandoned” his soldiers This was before he was deployed to Iraq in 2005.
“We all did what we had to do. We did the right thing,” Schilling said Wednesday on Fox News’ “Jesse Watters Primetime.” “What he did was disgraceful. He gave his position to somebody else. He abandoned us.”
Harris’ campaign released a statement saying, “During his 24 years as Governor, the Governor has carried, fired and trained others in the use of countless weapons of war. Governor Walz will never disparage or undermine Americans’ service to this country. In fact, the Governor thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. That’s the American way.”
Fox News’ Alexa Mutevelis and Anders Hagstrom contributed to this report.
