Fact Check: The Controversy Over Tim Walz's Claim To Have Visited Bagram Airfield 'in Iraq' Explained

Snopes ^ | Aug 12, 2024 | Alex Kasprak

[where's_the_Outrage?]

Claim:

Tim Walz claimed to have traveled to Bagram Airfield as a service member and also incorrectly stated that Bagram was in Iraq, not Afghanistan.

Rating:

False

Tim Walz traveled to Bagram Airfield as a U.S. congressman. The claim that Walz implied that such trips were part of his service in the National Guard, or that he incorrectly stated that Bagram was in Iraq, stem from a written version of his remarks at a 9/11 memorial service that differ from the remarks he actually gave.

In the wake of renewed interest in how Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz has described his service in the National Guard, right-leaning accounts on X claimed to have caught Walz in a case of stolen valor: falsely claiming to have seen combat. The evidence? A video of Walz "claiming he was on the tarmac in Bagram":......

In the years that happened after [9/11], I had the privilege of serving in this state's National Guard. And when I left, I had a 2-year-old. When I came home, I had a 3-year-old.

But as I listened to [Jill Stephenson and Mariah Jacobsen, gold star mothers who spoke before Walz] … the guilt. … I came home and my daughter went on. And when you're 2 and 3, she knew no difference. That's not true for some. They can't do that.

And over the preceding [sic] years of watching us and as our nation changed, and as our political systems became more difficult for all of us to understand, I stood one night in the dark of night on the tarmac at Bagram and watched a military ramp ceremony. And if you've seen it, which these folks many have, unfortunately, you don't leave the same.

[where's_the_Outrage?]

I wondered if he really said that. Looks like a typical Dem attack by changing the context. We don't need to make things up, just use their true quotes.

https://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/4257860/posts?page=2#2

[1malumprohibitum]

Even if absolutely true, he still lied about his service on multiple other occasions. Doing it 5 times and saying hey one time I was taken. out of context doesnt really change anything

[nesnah]

“Fake, but accurate.”

[sopo]

“Bagram was in Iraq, stem from a written version of his remarks at a 9/11 memorial service that differ from the remarks he actually gave. “ This sounds like Josh Steiner lying to his diary.

[wiseprince]

“Fact Checkers” are Democrat rapid response teams that started in 2007/2008 to defend Obama against Rev. Wright “smears”. The genius of it is that most people think that fact checkers are just checking the facts which is completely false.

[rktman]

I heard he’s up for a purple heart due to these attacks and possibly a MOH.

[mozarky2]

Judge for yourselves:
More proof of “Tampon Tim” claiming something that never happened:

In Gov. Walz’ entry into the pamphlet “Minnesota In The Global War On Terrorism” he stated this obvious lie:

And I think of all those emotions I went through when our country was attacked: 374 Minnesota in the Global War on Terrorism fear, anger, confusion, hope, pride, a desire for revenge, guilt. As for me, I was sitting in room 114 at Mankato West High School right before school started. And in a typical high school, there was the noise in the halls, and it was a new school year. But then kids started coming in and sitting in classrooms and the TV was on, and those events started to unfold, and that room got fuller and quieter and there were tears and fear and confusion.

In the years after that classroom, I had the privilege of serving in this state’s national guard. I stood one night in the dark of night on the tarmac at Bagram Air Base in Iraq and watched a military ramp ceremony–a soldier’s body being loaded onto a plane to be returned home. And if you’ve seen it, you don’t leave the same. It makes you wonder, what are we doing? What are we trying to get to? And then watching as all of you have been, the confusing last few weeks with the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan.

[Kid Shelleen]

Nasty man ..

Walz's storm troopers shot paint rounds at residents standing on their porch during COVID

[Pres Raygun]

Snopes is technically right in their assessment of Walz’s speech, but they nonetheless deceive their readers in the same way Walz deceived his listeners during his speech. He intentionally leaves out details of his various journeys so that the audience will conflate his year with his NG service in Italy during the war with a deployment in either Iraq or Afghanistan. He even goes as far as to imply that he was a lucky one who came home form his overseas NG service when others didn’t, which leave the audience assuming that he survived his tour of duty solely due to luck rather than being “deployed” to Italy where he faced absolutely no danger. This guy is very slippery.

[New Perspective]

I have a link to that video and watched it. Another post somewhere said he attended this event as a member of congress years later. Yes, he did witness it however it was NOT because he was deployed.

This is a premier example of how the left uses half truths and lying by omission to convey a certain point or dialog. Such slimy people.

[lurk]

He can’t tell you where he was. Seal teams move in total secrecy.

[PIF]

While stationed in Italy, he asked his mom to send him another set of false teeth, but there was a mix up and the package was sent to Afghan. When the mistake was discovered the package was sent on to Italy.

He proudly wears those same false teeth today. So its true he ( or part of him ) did visit Afghan.

[mozarky2]

Sure puts the lie to that fact-checker!

[Varsity Flight]

Snake.

Biden

[New Perspective]

It very much does, fact checkers = Opinion Twists

[9YearLurker]

It’s the old trick of smacking down something particular that is related to the claim, but not specifically accurate—and then proclaiming it false and letting people think any related claim is false.

[Justa]

Balad air base is in Iraq. Space-A used to fly out of Balad for GE/US-bound C-17 flights.

[cgbg]

Yup—that was the “pizza” trick.

The mass media took the (imho true) claim that Podesta’s emails used a pizza code to discuss child trafficking and morphed it into a false claim that a specific pizza parlor had children hidden in the basement.

Then a kook even stormed into the pizza parlor looking for the kids.

Lol.

[9YearLurker]

Perfect example.

[your other brother]

The fact check begs the question of where the written version of the speech originated and how did it come to be included in the publication and if you can think of any source other than Walz or his office be my guest and I have a bridge to sell you. Snopes loves “context” and uses it to explain away their own lying eyes. So here is the truth Walz or his office put out a copy of his speech which claimed Bagram was in Iraq and Walz was there on a National Guard deployment to gussy up his bona fides and mislead the public. In other words he is a lying sack of horse manure. And so is Snopes.