Takeaways from the AP’s review of Tim Walz’s descriptions of his military record

Associated Press

WASHINGTON (AP) — Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz served in the National Guard for 24 years, rising through the enlisted ranks and receiving an honorable discharge. It’s a record seen as one of his political strengths. But Republicans are trying to turn it into a weakness. They’ve seized on criticism from former National Guard members denouncing the Minnesota governor for retiring from the military in 2005 to run for Congress shortly before his unit was deployed to Iraq and for overstating the rank he held after he left the service. They’ve also pointed to a comment Walz made that implied he’d seen combat, when he hadn’t.