Video News Clips: In Their Own Words

‘The View’ Co-Host Confronts Walz On False Claims About Being In Hong Kong During Tiananmen Square Protests

Gov. Tim Walz on "The View"

“The View” co-host Alyssa Farah Griffin confronted Democratic vice presidential candidate and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz Monday about his previous assertions that he was in Hong Kong during the Tiananmen Square protests of 1989.

Walz falsely claimed on several occasions that he was in Hong Kong during the pro-democracy protests at Tiananmen Square in Beijing, China, which killed hundreds of people in the spring of 1989. Griffin asked Walz to clear up these claims and further questioned what he would say to voters who are worried about there being a “trust issue” in today’s politics.

“I want to ask about a number of misstatements you’ve made about your previous military record and travels you’ve been in,” Griffin began. “I want to be unequivocal. Nobody lies as much as Donald Trump, nothing you’ve misled on is anything on the same level. But in an era where there’s so much mistruth in our politics, so many lies, can’t there be no gray area, and how would you convey to voters that they may be concerned there’s a trust issue?”

“Yeah, I do think you have to be careful about this, whether it’s misstating in Hong Kong in August of ’89, 35 years ago. I think people do separate that between a pathological liar like Donald Trump,” Walz said. “They get it out there. But I do think it’s important that we’re careful about how we speak Something for me is, I think being a teacher, being a coach, I just speak from my heart. I speak honestly, I speak in the moment … But I think the public sees this, just the massive amount of misinformation that gets poured out there, and it is important to be detailed.”

The vice presidential candidate struggled during the Oct. 1 vice presidential debate when he was confronted on the false claims about Hong Kong, saying he traveled to China in the summer of ’89 and criticized Republican nominee Donald Trump’s policies on China.

Veterans who served with Walz in the Army National Guard battalion accused him of abandoning them upon learning of their upcoming deployment to Iraq in 2005, according to a 2018 letter posted to Facebook. Vice President Kamala Harris’ headquarters posted footage of Walz saying civilians should not own the weapons he carried in war, though he did not serve in Iraq and instead was stationed in Italy during the War on Terror.

Republican vice presidential candidate J.D. Vance, a former Marine who served in Iraq, called Walz’s alleged exit “shameful” and accused him of “stolen valor” during a press conference in August.