Newly minted Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz (MN) has a major problem on his hands due to his penchant for embellishing his record of service at the Army National Guard. The networks who so warmly welcomed him into the race are now doing their level best to spin this problem away.

Watch as ABC’s Selina Wang tries to wave the whole thing away by noting that Vance didn’t engage in any hostilities while in Iraq, echoing the Harris campaign and making up a Walz counterattack that never happened:

SELINA WANG: New rivals Vance and Walz, both veterans. Vance, who deployed to Iraq in the Marines and did not see any active fighting, going after Walz's military background, accusing him of leaving his unit before it deployed to Iraq, and lying about his service. Seizing on this moment:

TIM WALZ: And we can make sure those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at.

JD VANCE: He has not spent a day in a combat zone. What bothers me about Tim Walz is the stolen valor garbage. Do not pretend to be something that you're not.

WANG: Reporter: Walz served in the Army National Guard for 24 years and has never claimed to have seen active combat, despite those comments that he carried a gun in war. He retired honorably in 2005 to run for congress as the crisis in Iraq was growing. The Harris campaign saying in a statement, the Governor carried, fired, and trained others to use weapons of war innumerable times. Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American's service to his country. In fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. It's the American way. Walz hitting right back.

WALZ: Donald Trump, he sees the world differently than we see it. He has no understanding of service.

“Hitting right back”, says Wang without evidence of Walz directly addressing the claims presented by multiple parties going back to the 2000s.

CBS’s Nancy Cordes didn’t do much better, closing out her live hit from the Harris rally with this weak offering:

NANCY CORDES: The Vance campaign has also been going after Walz all day for retiring from the Army National Guard a few months before his battalion being called up to Iraq. Onstage today, Walz said he proudly wore the uniform for 24 years and retired in order to run for Congress. Major.

There’s a pattern there- the deflection to Walz’s 24 years of service in the Guard. In contrast, NBC’s Gabe Gutierrez simply aired what everyone else said, with no “seasoning” of his own:

GABE GUTIERREZ: Vance also slamming Walz for these past comments calling for gun control, saying he carried weapons during war.

WALZ: And we can make sure those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at.

GUTIERREZ: Walz served in the National Guard but never in combat.

VANCE: Well, I wonder, Tim Walz, when were you ever in war? When was this -- what was this weapon that you carried into war?

GUTIERREZ: Today the Harris campaign said Walz carried, fired and trained others to use weapons of war innumerable times. Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American service to this country. 

The “24 years” stuff is misdirection and “How Dare You” bait that attempts to deflect from the substance of the accusations against Walz, to wit: that he dropped out of Sergeant Major school, completion of which was a condition of his promotion to Command Sergeant Major of his artillery battalion, upon learning that the unit would deploy to Iraq. 

This story is rapidly moving, with new and shocking details continuously emerging. As Joe Simonson of The Washington Free Beacon reports, Walz KNEW.

Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz knew his National Guard battalion was being eyed for a likely deployment to Iraq when he decided to retire, the Washington Free Beacon has learned.

Walz said he had a "responsibility" to "serve if called on," shortly before he dropped out of the Guard, an archived campaign statement shows. That statement eliminates any doubt over whether Walz knew an Iraq deployment was on the table when he decided to leave the service. A source who served in the Minnesota National Guard at the time previously told the Free Beacon that the timing of Walz’s retirement "left a bad taste in a lot of peoples’ mouths."

"As Command Sergeant Major, I have a responsibility not only to ready my battalion for Iraq, but also to serve if called on," Walz said in a campaign statement on March 20, 2005. Just three days prior, the National Guard Public Affairs Office announced that at least part of his battalion could be shipped overseas to the Middle East in the next two years.

Walz left the National Guard that May. Two months later, his battalion was put on notice that they would be deploying to Iraq.

This is in addition to emerging photographic and video evidence of Walz’s embellishments and false claims of being a veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom, which would’ve entailed deployment to Afghanistan.

At a bare minimum, the press should put as much effort into this story as it did into unearthing Senator JD Vance’s past statements after his selection as Trump’s running mate. There is a lot that Walz must answer for in the coming days. Unfortunately, the press seems more interested in making this all go away than in getting answers and drilling down.

Click “expand” to view the full transcripts of the aforementioned reports as aired on their respective network newscasts on Wednesday, August 7th, 2024:

ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT

ABC WORLD NEWS TONIGHT

8/7/24

6:36 PM 

LINDSEY DAVIS: We move on now to the race for The White House. The newly formed Democratic ticket, Vice President Kamala Harris and Governor Tim Walz, barnstorming the Upper Midwest in this their first full day of campaigning together. One day after debuting the ticket in Philadelphia, Vice President Harris and Governor Walz spoke to crowds in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, and just outside Detroit. Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance is shadowing their moves. Vance also in Eau Claire trying to cross paths with Harris and Walz on the tarmac. The Democratic running mates continue their blitz through the battlegrounds in the coming days, with Vance not far behind. ABC's Selina Wang checks in from Michigan.

SELINA WANG: Tonight, the race for The White House is in full swing, with both campaigns battling to win the Midwest. Air force Two and JD Vance's campaign plane meeting on the tarmac.

JD VANCE: I just wanted to check out my future plane.

WANG: Holding dueling rallies in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

VANCE: How great it is to be here in Eau Claire, Wisconsin.

VICE PRESIDENT KAMALA HARRIS: Good afternoon, Wisconsin.

WANG: Vice President Kamala Harris and her new running mate Minnesota Governor Tim Walz on the trail for their first full day of campaigning, drawing another huge crowd.

HARRIS: So, in the next 90 days, we need you to use your power. We need you to knock on doors. We need you to register folks to vote. We need you to energize, and organize, and mobilize and make your voices heard.

WANG: The campaign saying they've raised $36 million in the 24 hours since Walz has been on the ticket. A new poll out today shows Harris and Donald Trump effectively tied among likely Wisconsin voters. Harris hoping Walz, from bordering Minnesota, will help them take the state. New rivals Vance and Walz, both veterans. Vance, who deployed to Iraq in the Marines and did not see any active fighting, going after Walz's military background, accusing him of leaving his unit before it deployed to Iraq, and lying about his service. Seizing on this moment:

WALZ: And we can make sure those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at.

VANCE: He has not spent a day in a combat zone. What bothers me about Tim Walz is the stolen valor garbage. Do not pretend to be something that you're not.

WANG: Reporter: Walz served in the Army National Guard for 24 years and has never claimed to have seen active combat, despite those comments that he carried a gun in war. He retired honorably in 2005 to run for congress as the crisis in Iraq was growing. The Harris campaign saying in a statement, the Governor carried, fired, and trained others to use weapons of war innumerable times. Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American's service to his country. In fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. It's the American way. Walz hitting right back.

WALZ: Donald Trump, he sees the world differently than we see it. He has no understanding of service, because he's too busy servicing himself again and again and again. Again and again and again. This guy weakens our country to strengthen his hand.

DAVIS: Let's get right to Selina Wang, live outside Detroit. And Selina, both campaigns in Michigan tonight. There is a keen awareness of just how important both these battleground states are.

WANG: That's right, Linsey. Harris and Walz, they are racing to win over voters in these critical battleground states, well aware that this election is only 90 days away. And they've had massive crowds at their rallies, and they've been energized and fired up including here in Michigan. JD Vance, on the other hand, he’s been following Harris in every state that she's been visiting, but opting to hold smaller campaign events instead of rallies. Linsey?

DAVIS: Selina for us, thanks so much.

CBS EVENING NEWS

CBS EVENING NEWS

8/7/24

6:34 PM

MAJOR GARRETT: Meanwhile, Kamala Harris and her new running mate Tim Walz held a rally in battleground Wisconsin today, at the same time, in the same city as  Republican vice presidential candidate JD Vance. This split screen moment comes as we’re learning tonight that a 2020 phone call from Donald Trump may undercut his own campaign's attack line against Walz. Here is CBS's Nancy Cordes.

NANCY CORDES: It's the first full day of their partnership, and the second day that the lines to see Vice President Kamala Harris and Minnesota Governor Tim Walz stretched out of sight.

TIM WALZ: You had to walk 2 miles. I had nothing to do with that, by the way.  Nothing.

CORDES: It happened here in Detroit, and in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, population 70,000.

WALZ: Donald Trump is not for you or your family. And Trump's running mate shares those same dangerous and backward beliefs.

CORDES: It is here in the Midwest where the campaign is hoping Walz will do the most to attract new voters.

VOTER: We could relate to him. He was real. Um- and we need that. We- we need someone that is real.

CORDES: The Republican VP nominee, Ohio Senator JD Vance, has been counterprogramming, holding events nearby. Today, he even walked from his plane over to Vice President Harris' plane on the tarmac in Wisconsin.

VANCE: I just wanted to check out my future plane, but I also wanted to go say hello to the Vice President and ask her why Kamala Harris refuses -- why does she refuse to answer questions from the media?

CORDES: Vance and Trump have been going after Governor Walz for his handling of the unrest in Minneapolis after George Floyd was killed by police in 2020.

VANCE: I think Governor Walz has to answer when it comes to his record. This is a guy who says that he stands for public safety, but actively encouraged the rioters who burned down Minneapolis.

CORDES: But at the time, Trump was full of praise for Walz, according to this audio recording of a phone call with governors.

DONALD TRUMP: Tim is on the phone now. Tim Walz. Again, I was very happy with the last couple of days, Tim. You called up big numbers and the big numbers knocked them out so fast it was like bowling pins. 

CORDES: The Vance campaign has also been going after Walz all day for retiring from the Army National Guard a few months before his battalion being called up to Iraq. Onstage today, Walz said he proudly wore the uniform for 24 years and retired in order to run for Congress. Major.

GARRETT: Competing with the campaign noise in Detroit and doing so admirably. Nancy Cordes, thank you.

NBC NIGHTLY NEWS

NBC NIGHTLY NEWS

8/7/24

LESTER HOLT: Now to the race for The White House  with Vice President Harris and her new running mate, Tim Walz, hitting key Midwestern states today and the Trump campaign sending JD Vance to those same battlegrounds. Here's Gabe Gutierrez.

GABE GUTIERREZ: Tonight, a battleground blitz. Vice President Kamala Harris and her new running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz sweeping through Midwestern swing states. 

KAMALA HARRIS: As we work to move our nation forward, Donald Trump intends to take our nation backward.

GUTIERREZ: The ticket riding a wave of Democratic enthusiasm and cash. The campaign saying it's raised $36 million since yesterday's announcement. Walz today going after former President Trump while talking about the experience he and his wife had with IVF.

TIM WALZ: When Vice President Harris and I- everyone here talks about freedom, we mean the freedom to make your own health care decisions. 

GUTIERREZ: Harris did not previously know Walz well, but multiple sources tell NBC News she chose him because they clicked during an in-person interview on Sunday and that it came down to trusting her gut.

HARRIS: We are running a campaign on behalf of all Americans. And when elected, we will govern on behalf of all Americans. 

GUTIERREZ: Late today, President Biden was asked if there will be a peaceful transfer of power.

JOE BIDEN: If Trump loses I'm not confident at all. He means what he says. We don't take him seriously.

GUTIERREZ: Democrats highlighting Walz’s working class rural background and two decades in the Army National Guard. Former President Trump arguing Walz is too far left to win.

DONALD TRUMP: He’s a very, very liberal man and he's a shocking pick and I'm thrilled -- I could not be more thrilled.

GUTIERREZ: Meanwhile, his running mate JD Vance's plane landing at the same tarmac as Air Force Two, holding events near the Democrats.

JD VANCE: And if what Kamala Harris has done at the southern border and if what Kamala Harris has done to raise the price of groceries and housing, if that doesn't bother you, then I think you don't have a pulse.

GUTIERREZ: Vance also slamming Walz for these past comments calling for gun control, saying he carried weapons during war.

WALZ: And we can make sure those weapons of war that I carried in war is the only place where those weapons are at.

GUTIERREZ: Walz served in the National Guard but never in combat.

VANCE: Well, I wonder, Tim Walz, when were you ever in war? When was this -- what was this weapon that you carried into war?

GUTIERREZ: Today the Harris campaign said Walz carried, fired and trained others to use weapons of war innumerable times. Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American service to this country. 

While back here in Michigan, Harris and Walz trying to shore up union support.

AFT MEMBER: I’ve had so many people that have come forward and said they're so excited for this energy that she has brought. It's electrifying. I don't know if Joe Biden could have done that for us.

GUTIERREZ: But some Arab-American voters are still skeptical. We first met Lori Kamleh Ajlouny in February, back then she wouldn't vote for President Biden because of his response to civilian deaths in Gaza. Harris now leading the ticket makes her more hopeful but --

LORI KAMLEH ALJOUNY: I'm still very leery, nervous, that it may be more of the same.

GUTIERREZ: At this point, do you plan to vote for Kamala Harris?

ALJOUNY: Not unless I hear a permanent unconditional cease-fire.

HOLT: And, Gabe, with 90 days to go the race in these battlegrounds is showing signs of heating up.

GUTIERREZ: Yes, Lester, Harris and Walz are set to meet with union members here in Michigan tomorrow before heading out West to key battlegrounds Ariona and Nevada. Trump is set to campaign in Montana on Friday. Lester.

HOLT: Gabe Gutierrez. Thank you.