A Republican lawmaker erupted at Minnesota Governor Tim Walz during a GOP-led House oversight hearing on Thursday, accusing Walz of “stolen valor” because of discrepancies in his public statements about his military service.
The Context
Walz, the former Democratic vice presidential nominee, served in Minnesota’s National Guard for 24 years, reaching the rank of command sergeant major, but that rank was later removed due to the failure to complete needed coursework. Walz’s title was then reduced to master sergeant.
The Minnesota governor drew sharp scrutiny over his military service during the 2024 presidential campaign after he publicly referred to himself as a “retired Command Sergeant Major.”
What To Know
On Thursday, Walz was again grilled over his record by Republican Representative Pete Stauber of Minnesota. The exchange came during a hearing in which Walz and other governors representing states with sanctuary immigration policies testified before the Republican-led House Oversight Committee.
“Governor, what weapons did you carry in war?” Stauber asked Walz during the House hearing.
“Congressman, for 24 years, I carried—” Walz began.
“No, no, no,” Stauber said, cutting him off and pointing his finger at Walz. “What weapons did you carry in war?”
“What did you carry in uniform?” Walz shot back at Stauber, who served as a lieutenant in the Duluth Police Department before running for Congress.
“You know I misspoke,” Walz added, referring to his previous comments about retiring as a Command Sergeant Major.
“I’ll tell you what, governor, you’re barking down the wrong tree, okay?” Stauber said, while pointing at Walz. “You lied to the Minnesotans. You said that you carried weapons in war. That is stolen valor.”
At that point, a Democratic lawmaker on the House oversight panel asked the chairman, GOP Representative James Comer, to step in and allow Walz to speak, but Stauber continued speaking over them.
“Stolen valor!” Stauber shouted as Walz tried to respond. “You didn’t carry weapons in war. Will you apologize for lying?”
Representative Stephen Lynch, the ranking member on the panel, again asked Comer to step in, saying, “That’s not questioning a witness.”
“You are hectoring,” Lynch said, addressing Stauber.
Stauber: What weapons did you carry in war!!!! Walz: What weapons did you carry in uniform?Stauber: My wife served in the military! Stolen Valor!!!!!! pic.twitter.com/Ie9Z8yeOqN
— Acyn (@Acyn) June 12, 2025
Walz addressed his public comments about his military service in an August 2024 interview with CNN‘s Dana Bash. At the time, Bash asked Walz, who spoke alongside then-Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris, if he misspoke while saying that he carried a weapon “in war.”
Walz responded: “I said, we were talking about in this case—this was after a school shooting—the ideas of carrying these weapons of war, and my wife, the English teacher, told me my grammar is not always correct. But again, if it’s not this, it’s an attack on my children for showing love for me, or it’s an attack on my dog.”
Walz added: “The one thing I’ll never do is I’ll never demean another member’s service in any way. I never have and I never will.”
This is a breaking news story. Updates to follow.
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