SCRANTON, Pa. — Note: The above video is from an earlier story on the campaign visit.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic candidate for vice president, spent nearly an hour in front of a Lackawanna County crowd to try to whip up support for his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris, in must-win Pennsylvania.
During his speech at the Scranton Cultural Center at the Masonic Temple, Walz took aim several times at the character of Republican nominee Donald Trump.
Newswatch 16 has been fact-checking claims made by candidates of both sides during their trips to northeast and central Pennsylvania this election and took some time to look over some of the barbs Walz aimed at Trump.
Here’s what we found:
1. Governor Tim Walz told the crowd that the president of the United Automobile Workers labor union called Republican nominee Donald Trump a “scab.”
Answer: True.
Shawn Fein, president of the UAW, made the comment during a speech this August at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago, where Vice President Kamala Harris received the Democratic nomination.
During his speech, Fein sought to present Harris and Walz as the working-class alternative to the ultrawealthy Republican ticket.
“Kamala Harris is one of us,” Fein said. “She’s a fighter for the working class. And Donald Trump is a scab.”
2. Walz told the crowd that those who worked high up in the former Trump administration “are out there now dialing 911” to warn the American public about the dangers of a Trump restoration.
Answer: Mostly true.
Several of the former president’s administration officials have publicly criticized him. That's nothing new. However, the three cited Friday by Walz — Mark Milley, a retired general who served as chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; James Mattis, the former defense secretary; and John Kelly, a retired Marine Corps general who served as White House chief of staff — are notable.
Milley and Kelly have, on record, called Trump a “fascist,” or at least have said he fits the definition.
In comments to the Washington Post’s Bob Woodward, Milley called Trump “fascist” and “the most dangerous person in the world.” Kelly, in interviews with the New York Times, said Trump’s far-right views, authoritarian tendencies and admiration for dictators places Trump “into the general definition” of fascism.
Mattis also has been publicly critical of Trump. In 2020, The Atlantic magazine quoted Mattis as saying, “Donald Trump is the first president in my lifetime who does not try to unite the American people—does not even pretend to try. Instead, he tries to divide us.”
Woodward said Mattis wrote to him and agreed with the concerns raised by Milley in Woodward’s book, “War.”
A cordial Mattis, however, declined to comment Saturday to a Seattle Times reporter who knocked on his door in Washington state.
3. Walz claimed that Michael Flynn, a former national security adviser in the Trump administration, responded to a question about potentially executing political rivals by saying “we have to win the election first.”
Answer: Largely true, but more context is warranted.
This claim stems from a question posed earlier this month at the Rod of Iron Freedom Festival in Pike County. Flynn, a speaker at the festival, said “we have to win the election first” during a several minute long answer to a question about potentially killing rivals.
The way that Walz made this claim lent an appearance that Flynn explicitly approved. A deeper listen, in this case, is warranted.
Flynn did not take the opportunity to shoot down the idea of killing political rivals. His response, instead, seemed to meander for a few minutes until he finally concluded: “believe me, the gates of hell, my hell, will be unleashed.”
According to a video of the exchange posted on YouTube, a participant at a question-and-answer panel asked Flynn if a “positive” election result might mean that Flynn could regain his military rank and sit at the head of a tribunal that would “not only drain the swamp, but imprison the swamp, and on a few occasions, execute the swamp."
Flynn responded that the questioner’s “sentiment” centered on accountability, which Flynn said is needed.
Smiling, Flynn continued that the questioner “went into some other areas,” which he said is “your right and our privilege.”
“There is a way to get after this, but we have to win first,” Flynn said, likening his mindset to an athlete who gets to a championship by only worrying about the next game.
“I’m about winning,” Flynn continued. “We have to win. These people are already up to no good, so we’ve got to win first. We win, and then, ‘Katie, bar the door.’ Ok? Believe me. The gates of hell, my hell, will be unleashed.”