Quick Hit:

Republican vice presidential nominee, Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, accused his Democrat counterpart, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz of "lying" about his military service and engaging in "stolen valor garbage" during a campaign rally in Detroit Wednesday. Vance's comments came in response to Walz's criticism of his Ivy League education.

Key Details:

Vance responded to Walz's critique, saying, "I came from a family where nobody in my family had ever gone to law school. I grew up in a poor family. The fact that Tim Walz wants to turn it into a bad thing, that I actually worked myself through college, through law school and made something myself – to me, that's the American dream. And if Tim Walz wants to insult it, I think that's frankly pretty bizarre."
Vance accused Walz of abandoning his unit before they deployed to Iraq, stating, "When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, you know what he did? He dropped out of the army and allowed his unit to go without him, a fact that he's been criticized for aggressively by a lot of the people that he served with."
Vance also criticized Walz's gun control stance, questioning, "He said, 'We shouldn't allow weapons that I used in war to be on America's streets.' Well, I wonder, Tim Walz, when were you ever in war? When was this? What was this weapon that you carried into war, given that you abandoned your unit right before they went to Iraq, and he has not spent a day in a combat zone?"

Diving Deeper:

According to a report from Fox News, Republican vice presidential nominee and Ohio Sen. J.D. Vance, accused Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz of dodging his military service and misleading the country about his veteran status during a campaign rally in Detroit. Responding to Walz's attempt to frame him as an elitist for attending an Ivy League school, Vance defended his background: "I came from a family where nobody in my family had ever gone to law school. I grew up in a poor family. The fact that Tim Walz wants to turn it into a bad thing, that I actually worked myself through college, through law school and made something myself – to me, that's the American dream. And if Tim Walz wants to insult it, I think that's frankly pretty bizarre."

Vance then launched into a critique of Walz's military service: "As a marine who served his country in uniform when the United States Marine Corps, when the United States of America asked me to go to Iraq to serve my country, I did it. I did what they asked me to do, and I did it honorably. When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, you know what he did? He dropped out of the army and allowed his unit to go without him, a fact that he's been criticized for aggressively by a lot of the people that he served with. I think it's shameful to prepare your unit to go to Iraq, to make a promise that you're going to follow through, and then to drop out right before you actually have to go."

Vance further criticized Walz's comments on gun control, saying, "He said, 'We shouldn't allow weapons that I used in war to be on America's streets.' Well, I wonder, Tim Walz, when were you ever in war? When was this? What was this weapon that you carried into war, given that you abandoned your unit right before they went to Iraq, and he has not spent a day in a combat zone? What bothers me about Tim Walz is the stolen valor garbage."

Vance concluded by urging reporters to hold Walz and Vice President Kamala Harris accountable, noting that "Harris has not taken questions from the press in the 17 days since President Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race and endorsed her."