Kamala Harris has finally broken her silence on allegations that her running mate, Tim Walz, embellished his military service to score political points.
Briefly answering questions for the first time as a Democratic nominee on Thursday, Harris confronted claims that Walz retired from the National Guard before he was deployed, and his comment this week that he “went to war.”
She replied: “Listen, I commend anyone who has stepped forward to serve our country. And I think we all should.”
President Biden also weighed in on Walz’s selection as Harris’ vice presidential nominee, reportedly telling his campaign staff, “When you meet him, he’s the real deal,” according to CNN.
Kamala Harris finally took questions from reporters on Thursday, when she faced accusations that her running mate Tim Walz (seen alongside) embellished his military record.
Walz served 24 years in the National Guard but never saw combat and retired in 2005 to run for Congress after his battalion was deployed.
Walz served 24 years in the National Guard before retiring in 2005, ahead of his run for Congress.
However, while serving as a command sergeant major, he was promoted again to sergeant major when he left the Army because he had not completed the courses for the higher rank.
This week, Harris’ campaign was forced to make an embarrassing edit to her bio, removing the top rank from her profile.
Walz also raised eyebrows during his introductory speech Monday when he touched on gun control legislation, arguing that people should not have access to the weapons he “carried in war.”
He quickly faced accusations that he never saw combat, although he did train with heavy artillery and was deployed to Italy in 2003 in support of Operation Enduring Freedom.
Walz had previously come under scrutiny for his claims that he had served overseas in support of Operation Enduring Freedom, with some feeling he implied he had served in Afghanistan.
Asked about Walz’s military record, Harris said, “Listen, I commend anyone who has ever stepped up to serve our country. And I think we all should.”
Conservatives criticized the questions put to Harris on Thursday, saying they were easier than they could have been.
Amid a back-and-forth between her campaign and Trump’s over possible debates, Harris was asked for her reaction to the news that Trump agreed to one in early September.
“Well, I’m glad he finally agreed to a debate on September 10,” he said.
“I’m happy to have that conversation about further debate, or after September 10th, for sure.”
Harris added that she is working with her team to eventually sit down for an interview and said she wants to schedule it “before the end of the month.”
Bloomberg journalist Matthew Yglesias led the criticism of easy questions, saying on X: ‘High-level journalism is when you finally get a chance to ask the candidate a question, you ask when he’s going to answer more questions.’
Conservative commentator Ben Shapiro added: “No, this doesn’t count as an answer to serious or difficult questions. It’s a gentle hot stone massage.”