PHOENIX: Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic candidate for vice president, “misspoke” in a 2018 video about “weapons of war that I carried in war,” a Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson said Saturday.
Republicans, including the vice presidential nominee, Ohio Sen. JD Vance, began questioning Walz’s military record after Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic candidate for president, named the governor as her running mate on Tuesday.
Some of the criticism centers on comments by Walz in a 2018 video circulated on social media by the Harris campaign in which he speaks out against gun violence and says, “We can make sure that those weapons of war, that I carried in war, is the only place where those weapons are at.” The comment suggests that Walz portrayed himself as someone who spent time in a combat zone.
Walz served 24 years in various Army National Guard units but he was never in a combat zone.
Lauren Hitt, a spokesperson for the Harris-Walz campaign, said Saturday in a statement that Walz misspoke in the 2018 video.
“Governor Walz would never insult or undermine any American’s service to this country — in fact, he thanks Senator Vance for putting his life on the line for our country. It’s the American way,” Hitt said.
“In making the case for why weapons of war should never be on our streets or in our classrooms, the Governor misspoke,” Hitt added. “He did handle weapons of war and believes strongly that only military members trained to carry those deadly weapons should have access to them, unlike Donald Trump and JD Vance who prioritize the gun lobby over our children.”
Vance enlisted in the Marine Corps after graduating high school, serving four years as a combat correspondent, similar to a military journalist, and deploying to Iraq in that capacity in 2005.
Walz ‘misspoke’ in 2018 reference to ‘weapons of war, that I carried in war,’ Harris campaign says
https://arab.news/vgg32
Walz ‘misspoke’ in 2018 reference to ‘weapons of war, that I carried in war,’ Harris campaign says
- Walz served 24 years in various Army National Guard units but he was never in a combat zone
- Republicans began questioning Walz’s military record after Vice President Kamala Harris picked him as her running mate
Chinese carrier conducting intense air operations near Japan, Tokyo says
- Japan on Sunday summoned China’s ambassador to protest “dangerous” and “regrettable” acts by the carrier’s planes
- The Chinese embassy responded that Japanese aircraft had endangered flight safety by approaching the carrier
TOKYO: A Chinese carrier strike group sailing close to Japan kept up intense air operations on Sunday as it sailed into the Pacific Ocean east of the Okinawa Islands, Japan’s Self-Defense Forces said Monday.
The naval drills came amid growing tension between the East Asian neighbors and triggered a flurry of protests, with Tokyo accusing Beijing on Sunday of dangerous behavior. Japan said fighters from the Liaoning aircraft carrier aimed radar beams at Japanese jets scrambled to shadow its movements.
Illuminating an aircraft with a radar beam signals a potential attack that may force targeted planes to take evasive action.
Aircraft aboard the carrier conducted around 100 takeoffs and landings over the weekend, Japan’s SDF said.
Japan on Sunday summoned China’s ambassador, Wu Jianghao, to protest “dangerous” and “regrettable” acts by the carrier’s planes.
Japan will “respond calmly but firmly and continue to monitor the movements of Chinese forces in the waters around our country,” Chief Cabinet Secretary Minoru Kihara said at a regular press briefing on Monday.
The Chinese embassy in a statement denied Tokyo’s claims, saying that Japanese aircraft had endangered flight safety by approaching the carrier as it conducted training with its three missile-destroyer escorts.
“China solemnly demands that Japan stop smearing and slandering, strictly restrain its frontline actions, and prevent similar incidents from happening again,” it said.
Kihara rejected the claim that Japan’s aircraft endangered flight safety on the carrier.
The encounters marked the most serious run-ins between the two militaries in years and risk worsening relations already strained after Japan’s Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi warned that Tokyo could respond to any Chinese action against Taiwan that threatened Japan’s security.
