How Tim Walz went from being NRA-endorsed to receiving ‘straight F’s’

Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) has made the fact that he is a lifelong hunter, gun-owner, and veteran central to his political image, and he once even held a rare endorsement from the National Rifle Association.

But Walz’s stance on gun control has shifted throughout his time in political office, with the Minnesota governor saying he now receives F’s from the NRA, and his stance on guns has shifted more in line with the mainstream Democratic Party.

Shortly before Walz was tapped as Harris’s running mate, he touted his “straight Fs” from the NRA in a post on X, saying he sleeps “just fine” without it.

“I’m a gun owner, veteran, lifelong hunter, and dad,” Walz posted on X back in January. “I know basic gun safety isn’t a threat to the Second Amendment. It’s about keeping guns out of the wrong hands for the safety of our kids.”

Still, at one time, Walz proudly touted his ties to the NRA. In 2010, Walz, who represented Minnesota’s largely rural First Congressional District, aired an advertisement that touted his support for the organization and his love for hunting.

“Growing up, hunting taught me a lot about responsibility and respect,” Walz said in the ad, according to NBC News. “Lessons I hope to pass on to my kids. I’m proud to stand with the NRA to protect the rights of sportsmen and gun owners.”

Walz’s support for gun rights also extended to his voting record on the House floor, where he was largely a centrist voter on many issues and parted ways with his party on multiple pieces of legislation pertaining to guns.

He voted in favor of legislation that sought to turn the decision of whether veterans who had been given fiduciaries and deemed “mentally incompetent” were able to own a gun over to the courts rather than the federal government. Walz also co-sponsored a bill that expanded access to hunting and recreational shooting, among other measures in the bill.

In 2012, he was one of 17 House Democrats who voted with Republicans in favor of holding then-Attorney General Eric Holder in contempt of Congress for refusing to produce documents from the Department of Justice that Republicans were looking for during an investigation into the gun-trafficking operation called Fast and Furious.

Walz’s transition from one of the few Democrats to be endorsed by the NRA to advocate gun control started around the time of the Las Vegas mass shooting in 2017, which left 60 concertgoers dead. Shortly after the shooting, Walz pledged to send back all of the money he had received from pro-gun lobbies. At the time, he had received donations totaling $18,950 from the NRA and $6,000 from the National Shooting Sports Foundation during his time in Congress, according to campaign records. 

The following year, while running for Minnesota’s governorship, Walz also faced pressure from the Democratic Party to disavow his former NRA endorsement. 

“I hear the criticisms from those who take issue with my past campaign contributions from the NRA. That’s why I donated all of that money to the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund last year. I won’t be taking any contributions from them in the future. In fact, I expect them to start spending heavily to defeat me,” Walz said during his gubernatorial run in 2018. 

“It’s no surprise he turned away from the NRA as the NRA turned more and more extreme,” John Feinblatt, president of Everytown for Gun Safety, told the Washington Post. “Governor Walz has proven that he’s not afraid to stand up to the gun lobby to keep his constituents safe.”

Walz was also one of the co-sponsors of the House’s assault weapons ban legislation in the aftermath of the 2018 Parkland shooting. After the shooting, Walz penned an op-ed to the Star Tribune detailing his support for a ban on assault weapons, which he proposed during his run for governor.

 “I’ve listened hard to students, parents, law enforcement, teachers, sportsmen and survivors of gun violence, in every corner of Minnesota. And while they have different perspectives, I’ve heard them all say one thing loud and clear: This. Needs. To. Stop,” Walz wrote in 2018.

“After some of the worst mass shootings in our country’s history, the governor was moved to take a hard look at the facts and decided to support common sense gun reform that would prevent future tragedies. That level of introspection is something to be commended, not critiqued,” the Harris-Walz campaign said in a statement.

Since Vice President Kamala Harris tapped Walz as her running mate, the Harris campaign has sought to capitalize on Walz’s image as a hunter. Her campaign described him as an “avid pheasant hunter” and has sold camo-themed merchandise.