Vice presidential candidate Tim Walz has been accused of “staged” a pheasant hunting stunt to “woo” male voters, as critics flag a blatant blunder.
The 60-year-old governor of Minnesota returned to his home state on Saturday to attend the Pheasant Hunting Opener in Sleepy Eye, about 100 miles outside of Minneapolis.
During a press opportunity, Walz and his daughter Hope were spotted at the event where the politician greeted fellow hunters before standing in a circle in reflective bright orange for a chat.
His presence at the event comes as the Harris-Walz campaign has begun using the governor to influence states to hopefully encourage voters to cast a blue vote.
Opponents, however, immediately noticed something strange about Walz’s appearance at the pheasant hunt opener: The hunters were all without weapons, despite the fact that Walz is a legal gun owner and had been registered with a handgun at the event in recent years.
‘Did anyone see what was missing? Where are their weapons? I saw cameras, but no weapons. So they took him out with some guys in vests and took pictures of him playing with a dog,” someone wrote on X.
The 60-year-old governor of Minnesota (pictured with daughter Hope) returned to his home state on Saturday to attend the Pheasant Hunting Opener at Sleepy Eye, about 100 miles outside of Minneapolis.
His presence at the event comes as the Harris-Walz campaign has begun their new tactic of using the governor to influence states to hopefully encourage male voters to cast a blue vote.
‘Pheasant hunting without guns. Democrats are all about perception without reality,” Jeff Carlson wrote on X.
“Pretty hard to hunt without a gun,” one person wrote.
It is not known if Walz was filmed before or after the hunt or if he took part in the Minnesota tradition this weekend.
In previous years, Walz has attended and organized pheasant openers and posted several photos and videos of himself enjoying the activities in the Midwest. He hasn’t posted any photos of today’s events yet.
In 2022, the Minnesotan posted a photo of him and a group of six other men in Worthington at the Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener, where Walz was seen with his gun and a dead bird.
“And I’m happy to report that I bagged two birds this morning!” he wrote excitedly in the tweet.
In 2020, a now widely shared photo of Walz holding a gun in a field with a white and brown dog was shared with his legion of fans as he wished “good luck to all hunters who participate in this time-honored (and socially distant) Minnesota tradition !’
Opponents immediately called out the hunters for not showing their weapons in the footage, despite Walz being a legal gun owner
He also shared a photo of him in a field with two others, widely spaced to respect the pandemic’s social distancing rule.
In 2019, Walz attended the Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener in Austin, Minnesota, and posted a series of photos of himself shooting a bird out of the sky and holding the bird.
In one photo, he raised his fist in triumph after committing the murder during the event. He told his fan base that he “packed a bird” that year.
At this year’s event, Walz was expected to meet with outdoor-oriented influencers The Minnesota Star Tribune. They were expected to discuss the Second Amendment, wildlife conservation, hunting and gun safety.
Walz is also expected to travel to Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania to discuss hunting and becoming a football coach, as well as encouraging Black voters to get involved in politics, according to The Tribune.
His appearance at the pheasant opener comes a day after he went to X to call out Republican candidate Donald Trump and his vice president, JD Vance, for “manufacturing bulls**t.”
Walz blasted Donald Trump for “manufacturing bulls**t” after the former president warned in Detroit that the entire country “will end up like Detroit.”
In previous years, Walz has attended and organized pheasant openers and posted several photos and videos of himself enjoying the activities in the Midwest (photo: Walz at the 2022 Governor’s Pheasant Hunting Opener)
In 2019 (photo) and 2022, Walz “caught” a few birds while enjoying the activity
In one photo, he raised his fist in triumph after committing the murder during the event. He told his fan base that he ‘got a bird’ in 2019
That led to pushback from Walz, who has had his own string of recent fumbles, including occasionally calling himself a “knucklehead” during the vice presidential debate.
“Look, Donald Trump and JD Vance, they have a slightly different view of things. Yesterday Donald Trump was in Detroit and he said, “Our entire country will eventually be Detroit. You’re going to have a mess,” Walz said.
“Well, look, I know that’s not unexpected for him. That’s exactly what he’s going to do: tear down America. But if the man ever spent any time in the Midwest, as we all know, we know Detroit’s experience with the American comeback, with the Renaissance.”
Look, I’m one [Minnesota] Twins fan, and you smacked us,” Walz said. ‘We know where this is. Detroit is there. So we know: the city is growing, crime is decreasing, factories are opening. But all those guys know about production is producing crap. Every time they show up, every time they show up,” he said, drawing a laugh from the audience.
A new Wall Street Journal poll released Friday gave Harris a two-point lead, 49-47, over Trump, within the margin error, in a close race.