Democratic members of Congress who served in the military have signed an open letter defending Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s military service record and calling Ohio Sen. JD Vance’s attacks on Walz “beyond the pale,” according to a copy of the letter obtained by CNN.
The letter, signed by 19 Democratic veterans in Congress and coordinated by Navy veteran Rep. Mikie Sherrill, praises Walz’s “ethos and leadership” and his work as a former member of Congress and governor on behalf of veterans. The letter also attacks Vance, who served in the Marine Corps, for calling Walz’s military service into question.
“In the military, we all learned to respect and defend our fellow service members. While we might disagree with their policy proposals, we would never question their motives. We would never say that person doesn’t love America,” the letter states. “But that’s exactly what JD Vance did this week. And even worse, his attacks were purely politically driven.”
“Falsely maligning a fellow veteran’s service for personal gain is beyond the pale,” it continues.
The letter goes on to highlight former President Donald Trump’s previous comments disparaging military service members, calling those comments “a disgrace,” and urging Vance to cease criticizing Walz’s military service.
“So JD, remember what you fought for, remember how you felt that day you swore your first oath to the Constitution of the United States of America. Stop stooping to disgraceful, false attacks on your fellow veterans, fight for a brighter future, one that protects democracy and freedom, and is deserving of the brave men and women who are willing to give their all to protect it. A future like the one Vice President Harris and Governor Walz are fighting for,” the letter concludes.
The letter was signed by Democratic Sens. Tom Carper, Tammy Duckworth, Ed Markey, Gary Peters and Jack Reed, along with Democratic Reps. Jake Auchincloss, Salud Carbajal, Jason Crow, Christopher Deluzio, Ruben Gallego, Chrissy Houlahan, Ted Lieu, Seth Moulton, Jimmy Panetta, Pat Ryan, Gregorio Kilili Camacho Sablan, Bobby Scott, Mikie Sherrill and Mike Thompson.
The letter comes in response to Vance and Republican allies accusing Walz of misrepresenting his service record, highlighting a video of a 2018 campaign event in which Walz said he carried weapons “in war.” Vance said that quote amounted to “stolen valor.” The Harris campaign said in a statement following the attacks from Vance that he “misspoke.”
Vance has also falsely accused Walz of dodging an overseas deployment. Walz served for 24 years in the Army National Guard before retiring to run for Congress in 2005. Shortly after he retired, Walz’s unit received notification they would deploy to Iraq.
