The Democratic Party’s candidate for vice president has established an impressive career that has brought him close to the forefront of a presidential ticket; however, it seems this success may be precariously constructed. Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who has faced allegations of misrepresenting his military service, has frequently recounted the motivations behind his political aspirations.

According to his narrative, while working as a high school teacher, he took two students to a campaign event for former President George W. Bush. He claims that when event staff noticed one of the students sporting a John Kerry sticker on his backpack, they were barred from entry.

However, discrepancies in the governor’s account have led to accusations of dishonesty, as reported by The Washington Examiner. One significant inaccuracy is that he was, in fact, allowed into the rally, according to a source familiar with the incident who spoke to The Examiner on the condition of anonymity.

Additionally, the teenagers who accompanied him, Matt Klaber and Nick Burkhart, were not his students. The report indicated that the two teenagers were initially denied entry not due to the Kerry sticker, but rather because they had been involved in a prior altercation that had garnered local media attention.

Although he claimed that the incident marked the “moment that I decided to run for office” due to his “never been overly involved in political campaigns,” evidence gathered by The Examiner indicates that he was already engaged in political activities. This is supported by his attendance at an anti-Bush rally just days prior to the event from which he alleged he was barred entry, as evidenced by a photograph obtained by The Examiner.

“He was looking for an origin story,” former Bush campaign staffer who was in Minnesota in 2004, Chris Faulkner, said. “And he made one up.”

In 2020, the governor shared a series of posts on X, detailing his account of the events and inaccurately referring to the two teenagers as his students, a designation that was not correct.

“The last sitting President to visit my hometown of Mankato, Minnesota was George W. Bush in 2004. As a high school teacher and football coach, I brought two fellow teachers’ children to the speech as an educational experience. We were denied entry because the students had previously volunteered for the democratic party. Having just returned from military duty in Italy in support of Operation Enduring Freedom I wished to hear directly from the President and my students, regardless of political party, deserved to witness the historical moment of a sitting president coming to our city,” he said.

“Above all, I was struck by how deeply divided our country was becoming that a veteran & a group of high schoolers would be turned away at the door. It was at this moment that I decided to run for office. While I had a passion for politics, I had never been overly involved in political campaigns, and many people thought that a high school teacher and football coach didn’t stand a chance,” the governor said.

“Two years after President Bush’s visit, I was elected to represent southern Minnesota in Congress. Fourteen years later, I was elected as the Governor of the great State of Minnesota,” he said.

“Ahead of President Trump’s visit today to my hometown, I think about the next generation of leaders who are stepping up to meet this moment. Don’t wait for your moment, take it. You may just be governor someday,” he said.

The individuals who were not enrolled in his classes found themselves in a confrontation with Bush’s campaign staff just days prior to the event. One of these individuals, already an activist for the Democratic Party, contacted local media to report the incident. Subsequently, they were provided with tickets to the upcoming event, and one of their mothers requested Walz to accompany them, which he agreed to do. However, upon arrival at the event, they were refused entry after being informed that the Secret Service had classified them as a potential threat.