A resurfaced video from 2009 showed Iraq war veteran David Thul confronting Kamala Harris’ Vice Presidential pick Tim Walz’s staff over allegations that he was committing stolen valor over claims he had made.
From 2007 to 2019, Walz served as a Congressman from his state of Minnesota. From 1981 to 2005 Walz served in the U.S. military.
Walz portrayed himself as a veteran of Operation Enduring Freedom, a U.S. military operation in Afghanistan initiated after the September 11 attacks.
It turns out however that Walz never deployed to Afghanistan, instead he served in Europe during that time, according to The Washington Free Beacon.
STOLEN VALOR: Unearthed video from 2009 shows military veterans confronting Tim Walz’s staff over claims of stolen valor. pic.twitter.com/TBlfQmWngZ
— Dominic Michael Tripi (@DMichaelTripi) August 8, 2024
The video, taken in 2009 showed Thul speaking with Walz’s office aids regarding these claims. Thul recorded the interaction. He said Walz’s claims could be interpreted as violations of the Stolen Valor Act, which can potentially lead to jail time if Walz was ever indicted and convicted.
“Operation Enduring Freedom is limited to Afghanistan and the airspace directly above,” Thul said in the video, referencing wording on Walz’s website which would likely be interpreted that he was in Afghanistan.
Thul went on to discuss a photo of Walz holding a sign in 2004 which read ‘Enduring Freedom Veterans for Kerry’.
Here is Tampon Tim holding a “Enduring Freedom Veterans for Kerry” sign.
What a stolen valor POS. https://t.co/7Qy2l9JKP6 pic.twitter.com/FCtFXeHrFK
— Nathan Martin (@NathanMartin) August 8, 2024
“This right here, under current U.S. law, this can get the Congressman probably thrown in jail … Congressman Walz is clearly claiming … to be an Enduring Freedom veteran. Nobody disputes the fact that he is not an Afghanistan or Enduring Freedom veteran. So this represents a fairly serious issue,” Thul can be heard saying in the video while referencing the photo.
The revelations come after veteran National Guardsman Tom Behrends discussed the stolen valor allegations. Behrends was in the same battalion as Walz in 2004 while stationed in Europe.
Walz decided to vacate the unit when he was set to be deployed to Iraq, according to Behrends.
HOLY SH*T!
Minnesota National Guard Leaders Expose Tim Walz for Stolen Valor, Lying About His Rank, and Quitting When His Unit Was Deployed to Iraq.
"As soon as the shots were fired in Iraq, he turned and ran the other way and hung his hat up and quit," said Tom Behrends, a… pic.twitter.com/14zvDeSPRV
— I Meme Therefore I Am
(@ImMeme0) August 6, 2024
Walz can also be seen on CSPAN in 2007 using wordage that could lead viewers into thinking that he was somewhere that he wasn’t.
With its massive armed forces and ever-ongoing military conflicts in addition to a culture that values genuineness and shuns posers, those in America are known to take stolen valor very seriously. This is especially true when consideration is taken for those who have been killed in the line of service.
