Walz ‘misspoke’ in 2018 reference to ‘weapons of war, that I carried in war,’ Harris campaign says

PHOENIX — Governor of Minnesota. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee, “defeated” in a 2018 video “weapons of war that I carried in the war,” a Harris-Walz campaign spokesman said Saturday.

Republicans, including the vice presidential candidate, Senator Ohio. JD Vancebegan to question Walz’s military record after vice president Kamala Harristhe Democratic presidential candidate named the governor as her running mate on Tuesday.

Some of the criticism has focused on comments Walz made in a 2018 video circulated on social media by the Harris campaign, in which he spoke out against gun violence, saying, “We can make sure that those weapons of war that I carried in the war is the only place those weapons are.” The comment suggested Walz was portraying himself as someone who had spent time in a war zone.

Walz served in various units of the Army National Guard for 24 years, but he was never in a combat zone.

Lauren Hitt, a spokesperson for the Harris-Walz campaign, said in a statement Saturday that Walz misspoke in the 2018 video.

“Governor Walz would never insult or undermine an American in his service to this country — in fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. That’s the American way,” Hitt said.

“When he argued why weapons of war should never be on our streets or in our classrooms, the governor misspoke,” Hitt added. “He did wield weapons of war and believes strongly that only military personnel trained to carry these deadly weapons should have access to them, unlike Donald Trump and J.D. Vance who put the gun lobby ahead of our children.”

Vance enlisted in the Marine Corps after high school and served for four years as a combat correspondent, similar to a military journalist. In that role, he was deployed to Iraq in 2005.