Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz took up roughly a quarter of the time in his first major interview since Kamala Harris became the party's presidential nominee.
The Minnesota governor spoke for a total of seven minutes during an interview with CNN's Dana Bash on Thursday night, sitting next to his vice presidential nominee.
The entire interview between Harris and Waltz lasted about 27 minutes, excluding pre-recorded segments, according to The Washington Post's broadcast tracking.
The time tally comes after Harris, 59, was already facing criticism over Biden's decision to bring his No. 2 to his first official interview since he gave up his reelection bid last month.
Republicans and conservative critics had earlier accused the vice president of using Waltz as a bulwark as he faces tough scrutiny over his record in the White House race.
Much of Walz's speaking time during the interview was spent addressing the controversy over his exaggerated claims of combat experience during his 24 years in the National Guard.
Walz misleadingly claimed in an anti-gun violence video in 2018 that he was “carrying weapons of war … in a war,” a claim that has recently resurfaced.
Asked about the comments Thursday, Walz blamed his “passion” and “grammar,” adding that he got too heated at the time because he was talking about school shootings.
“I'm outspoken. I don't hide my feelings and I speak especially passionately about kids getting shot in schools and around guns,” he said, “so people know me, they know who I am, they know where my heart is.”
