Tim Walz’s Speech at the DNC—Fact-Checked

Kamala Harris’s running mate, Tim Walz, addressed the DNC on Wednesday evening, drawing on his political record in Minnesota and alleging opponents Donald Trump and JD Vance would enact the policy document Project 2025.
Walz, who said he wasn’t used to giving such speeches, touted his time as governor cutting taxes and the cost of prescription drugs, making a forceful case for Harris and blasting his Republican opponents.
However, the Minnesota governor has faced criticism from Republicans about claims that he has made about his history and background, particularly his 24 years in the National Guard. Critics say that he had made misleading statements about his time in combat.
Having given what has been called one of the more effective vice presidential acceptance speeches in recent convention history, Newsweek’s Fact Check team has assessed Walz’s comments to the DNC in finer detail.
Walz served with the Minnesota National Guard from 1981 to 2005 at Fort Benning, Georgia, and New Ulm, Minnesota, obtaining the rank of Command Sergeant Major.
Walz was also part of European Security Forces in Vicenza, Italy, in 2003, during the War on Terrorism but did not serve in open combat.
Walz was elected as representative for Minnesota’s First District in 2006. The district has been historically Republican over the past century, with the Republicans taking the seat back in 2019 after Walz was elected governor.
Democrat Timothy J. Penny was elected to the district for more than a decade before Walz ran, voted in from 1982 to 1994. The district voted Republican again until Walz’s win in 2006.
Much of Walz’s speech recounted his achievements in Minnesota, starting with middle-class tax cuts.
As reported by FOX 9, Walz signed into law a tax bill that cut Minnesota’s second-tier income tax rate from 7.05 percent to 6.8 percent. State records showed that, in 2019, married couples earning between $37,851 and $150,380 and single households earning $31,881 to $128,090 saw their income tax bill fall from 7.05 percent to 6.8 percent.
Walz also enacted a state tax cut in 2023 through the One Minnesota Budget, which included state surplus checks of $1,000 to $2,600 sent to 2.5 million Minnesotans. The payments were structured as advance income tax credit “equal to $2,000 for families with income below $150,000 and $1,000 for single filers making less than $75,000,” according to a news release.
As reported by CBS News, signed a bill last year that would give workers up to 12 weeks a year with partial pay to care for a baby or sick family member, with up to 12 weeks for recovery from serious illness. The changes will take effect in January 2026.
“By signing paid family and medical leave into law, we’re ensuring Minnesotans no longer have to make the choice between a paycheck and taking time off to care for a new baby or a sick family member,” Walz said in an announcement.
Walz announced last year $350 million for affordable housing initiatives in Minnesota, repairing and building 4,700 properties.
On crime, a $982 million public infrastructure bill presented by Walz earlier this year included a new headquarters for the Minnesota State Patrol. As reported by The Associated Press, this also included $48 million for a Bureau of Criminal Apprehension facility, to enhance laboratory and investigative services in the state.
In 2023, Walz signed legislation that provided funding to the attorney general’s office to hire up to seven additional criminal prosecutors.
Walz signed legislation in 2020 that allowed insulin patients in urgent need of the drug to go to their pharmacy once in a 12-month period and purchase it at a $35 co-pay for a 30-day supply, with insulin available “in 90-day increments at no more than $50.”
Walz also passed the Minnesota Drug Price Transparency Act, requiring drug manufacturers to report and publish information on high and quickly increasing drug prices, with the aim of building awareness and in doing so decreasing costs.
The Minnesota Department of Health noted in a 2023 report that the number of price increases from 2018 to 2022 that would have met the Transparency Act’s requirements for reporting had decreased, although the reporting requirement was not in force until 2022. The MDH stated that the implementation of price transparency laws “may have” influenced the change in price dynamics.
On medical debt, Walz signed legislation that banned medical providers from withholding care due to unpaid debt, and forgave medical debt that was passed onto spouses after death, reported MPR News.
Universal school lunches were signed into law by Walz in 2023, set to cost $400 million in its first two years, reported MPR News. The program is state-funded reimbursing schools for all meals served to students who do not qualify for reduced or free food.
Minnesota has not been immune to book banning. In 2016, the graphic novel This One Summer was pulled from school library shelves in Henning, Minnesota, following a complaint from a parent. The withdrawal led to free speech protests, reported U.K. newspaper The Guardian.
In 2018, To Kill a Mockingbird and The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn were dropped from one school district over the books’ use of racial slurs, as per The Washington Post.
Minnesota has not experienced the same kind of support for book-banning in states such as Florida from its politicians. In May 2024, the state legislature approved a bill prohibiting book bans in public schools and libraries, reported The Minnesota Star Tribune.
Walz announced the signing of three bills in April 2023 protecting people seeking or providing abortions in Minnesota. The bill provided protections to patients traveling to Minnesota for abortion care from “legal attacks and criminal penalties from other states.” The right to abortion was enshrined into Minnesota statute, meaning the state’s protections would remain regardless of changes to future courts, The Associated Press reported.
Walz mentioned his documented history as a hunter as he spoke about his support for the Second Amendment and concerns over gun safety. Newsweek was unable to find a public record of his hunting “trophies” and has contacted a media representative for Walz via email for comment.
Walz put ownership of Project 2025 directly at Trump and JD Vance’s feet during the speech. The controversial policy document published by the Heritage Foundation is claimed by many to be the blueprint for a 2025 Trump government. Neither has contributed to the document.
“They spend a lot of time pretending they know nothing about this,” Walz said.
“But, look, I coached high school football long enough to know, and trust me on this: When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re going to use it.”
Trump has denied associations with Project 2025 but said he is aware of it, calling some of its ideas “absolutely ridiculous and abysmal.”
Vance has said that it contains both “good ideas” and “some things he disagreed with.” Speaking with Newsmax’s Rob Schmitt on July 10, Vance was asked what he thought of Democrats using it to attack the Republican campaign.
Vance responded: “This is the craziest fear tactic they’re using right now. I think most Americans couldn’t care less about Project 2025. I reviewed a lot of it. There’s some good ideas in there, Rob; there’s some things that I disagree with; but, most importantly, it has no affiliation with the Trump campaign.”
Despite their attempts to distance themselves from the project, there are clear connections with the Republican presidential pair.
While Project 2025’s coordinators previously told Newsweek that it “does not speak for any candidate or campaign,” it was written in conjunction with a host of former Trump staffers, as many as 140, according to an analysis by CNN.
Vance also wrote a foreword for Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts’ new book, Dawn’s Early Light: Burning Down Washington to Save America. He said he was “thrilled” to have done so and that the book contained “a bold new vision for the future of conservatism in America.”
Vance has further links through American Moment, a nonprofit providing public policy training and intern opportunities to young conservatives. American Moment, which Vance has supported from its launch, has been a supporter of Project 2025 from its early development. In 2022, Saurabh Sharma, its president, said it would “work with the Presidential Transition Project to ensure that thousands of talented junior and midlevel appointees are ready on day one to serve the next President of the United States.”
American Moment has also secured Project 2025 Director Paul Dans as a speaker for its trainees; has invited Dans to speak on its podcasts; and has hired former employees of Project 2025 to its staff.
A number of Project 2025’s goals also echo Trump’s views on topics such as immigration, energy, and the abolishment of government departments such as the Department of Education.
Donald Trump’s spokesperson Steven Cheung told Newsweek: “Everything that came out of Tim’s mouth was a lie, just like how he lied about his service record.
“He is not fit to be Vice President,” Cheung added.
Newsweek has contacted media representatives for JD Vance via email for comment.
Trump’s policy platform says he would not introduce cuts to Social Security or Medicare. Point 14 of the agenda says his administration would “fight for and protect Social Security and Medicare with no cuts, including no changes to the retirement age.”
During his presidency, Trump rallied against the ACA, often referred to as Obamacare, but now says his approach would be softer if he is reelected. Kamala Harris’s spokespeople have previously told Newsweek that Trump’s historical opposition to the Affordable Care Act was “indisputable.” They added that, in a second term, “there would be nothing stopping Trump from trying again to gut critical benefits and succeeding.”
On abortion, Trump has taken credit for the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe vs. Wade, which led to new state-by-state policies on abortion care. His position on abortion has been floaty, indicating that he would leave decision-making on abortions to state legislators.
His campaign’s policy agenda makes only one mention of abortion.
“We proudly stand for families and Life,” the platform reads. “We believe that the 14th Amendment to the Constitution of the United States guarantees that no person can be denied Life or Liberty without Due Process, and that the States are, therefore, free to pass Laws protecting those Rights.”
It continues: “After 51 years, because of us, that power has been given to the States and to a vote of the People. We will oppose Late Term Abortion, while supporting mothers and policies that advance Prenatal Care, access to Birth Control, and IVF (fertility treatments).”
The Republican convention’s platform committee quickly and overwhelmingly adopted the policy platform during a meeting in Milwaukee earlier this month. However, the tempered language led to criticism from conservatives and some party members.
Toward the end of his speech, Walz rallied against government interference in public freedoms. This point may allude to claims that Trump and other Republicans are seeking to ban contraception if elected.
During an interview in May 2024, when asked whether he supported restrictions on access to contraception, Donald Trump said he would be “looking at that,” adding that he will have “a policy.”
However, shortly after, he appeared to walk back the remarks, saying on Truth Social that he would never advocate imposing restrictions on birth control.
Nonetheless, during his time in office, Trump’s administration tried to finalize rules that would have allowed employers to remove contraception services if they went against their religious beliefs or moral convictions.
The administration attempted to alter an Obama-era contraceptive mandate, promulgated in August 2011, which required that employer-based health plans cover prescription contraceptives at no cost to the patient.
The administration’s efforts were later held up in court. Project 2025 also states its plans to eliminate access to the week-after pill Ella.
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Update 8/27/2024 9:27 a.m. ET: This story was updated to include comment from Donald Trump’s spokesperson Steven Cheung.