Trump running mate Sen. J.D. Vance of Ohio took the opportunity during a back-and-forth with reporters on Tuesday to point out a huge flaw in his vice presidential opponent, far-left Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota, who was named as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate on Tuesday. Specifically, Vance, a Marine combat veteran, went after Walz’s military record for a “stolen valor” claim about being in “combat” though he actually abandoned his unit and left the Army rather than deploy with his men to Iraq.
A reporter asked, “Last night, the governor suggested that because of your Ivy League education and your Silicon Valley backing of your political career, you are part of the elite. What are your first impressions of them trying to frame you this way to the American public?”
It should be noted, first and foremost, that the vast majority of Silicon Valley billionaires are donating to the Harris-Walz campaign, but here’s what Vance said in response: “Well, look, I came from a family where nobody had ever gone to law school. I grew up in a poor family. The fact that Tim Walz wants to turn it into a bad thing, that I worked my way through college and law school and made something of myself, is, to me, the American dream. If Tim Walz wants to insult that, I think that’s frankly pretty bizarre.”
He then pivoted to Walz’s military record: “Now, what really bothers me about Tim Walz isn’t even the positions he’s taken, though certainly he has been a far-left radical. What really bothers me about Tim Walz, as a Marine who served his country in uniform, is when the United States Marine Corps, when the United States of America asked me to go to Iraq to serve my country, I did it. I did what they asked me to do, and I did it honorably and I’m very proud of that service.
“When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, you know what he did? He dropped out of the Army and allowed his unit to go without him—a fact he’s been criticized for aggressively by many of the people he served with. I think it’s shameful to prepare your unit to go to Iraq, to make a promise that you’re going to follow through, and then to drop out right before you actually have to go,” Vance continued.
“I also think it’s dishonest. If you guys ever get an opportunity to ask Tim Walz or Kamala Harris some questions, he made this interesting comment that the Kamala Harris campaign put out there—and I bet they regret putting it out there now—because he said that we, and he was making a point about gun control, ‘shouldn’t allow weapons that I used in war to be on America’s streets,'” he said.
“Well, I wonder, Tim Walz, when were you ever in war? What was this weapon you carried into war, given that you abandoned your unit right before they went to Iraq, and you have not spent a day in a combat zone? What bothers me about Tim Walz is the stolen valor garbage,” Vance continued. “Do not pretend to be something that you’re not. If he wants to criticize me for getting an Ivy League education, I’m proud of the fact that my family supported me, that I was able to make something of myself. I’d be ashamed if I were him and lied about my military service like he did.”
WATCH:
Sen. Vance rips into Harris VP pick Walz for claiming to be something he’s not – a “combat” veteran. Walz abandoned his unit and left the Army when it got orders to deploy to Iraq. pic.twitter.com/taBP6PI2cA
— USA Features Media (@UsaFeatures) August 7, 2024