Four veterans familiar with Governor Tim Walz (D-MN) discussed his service in the National Guard and his subsequent claims about that service during an interview with podcast host Megyn Kelly, which aired on Monday.
The veterans talked with Kelly about various controversies surrounding Walz’s descriptions of his 24-year service, including his claim that he retired without knowledge of his unit’s impending deployment to Iraq and his repeated assertions of “retiring as a Command Sergeant Major.”
They shared a few positive comments about Walz, who is currently running for the vice presidency alongside Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris.
"Morally indefensible…no integrity…habitual liar…I call him a coward, because he is…"
TOMORROW: Veterans who served with Tim Walz in the National Guard speak out together for the first time.@SiriusXM ch. 111 at NoonET, and all platforms after.https://t.co/YJPxz5Gu8d pic.twitter.com/41XeeJzl3P
— The Megyn Kelly Show (@MegynKellyShow) September 1, 2024
In a brief preview of the episode, the veterans could be heard describing Walz as a “habitual liar,” a “coward,” and “morally indefensible.”
One of the veterans accused Walz of using his exaggerations and embellishments to make it “all about him,” while another bluntly labeled him a “military impersonator.”
“He’s a habitual liar, he lies about everything. He lies about stuff that doesn’t make sense,” one said. “You’re taking a piece of their thunder, and you’re trying to capture it and put it in a bottle for yourself, and use that for your own benefit. Fear is a reaction. Bravery is a decision. And Walz has made wrong decisions. He’s not brave I call him a coward because he is.”
At one point in the episode, Kelly put together a series of clips showing Walz introducing himself as a “retired Command Sergeant Major,” or being introduced by others with that title without correcting them. This was despite the fact that he held the rank only conditionally and for a short time, not extending to his retirement.
“So he ‘misspoke’ a lot,’” Kelly said as the clips finished playing. “And just so the record’s clear, September 2005, Minnesota National Guard discovered that his paperwork had been filed — was erroneous — saying he was retiring as a Command Sergeant Major, and they updated it to show that he was retiring as an E-8 Master Sergeant.”
