The Minnesota Governor had previously found himself pilloried by conservative politicians and supporters soon after Kamala Harris announced him as her running mate. The online mockery earned him the nickname “Tampon Tim,” which the Democratic side soon embraced owing to its contextual foundation. However, the Saturday event once again saw the Internet fiercely ridicule the politician for a gaffe he let slip.

What did Tim Walz say at the Pennsylvania rally on Saturday?

Walz initially discussed gun violence and focussed on targetting former President Donald Trump and his VP pick, JD Vance, while also firing back at Project 2025, which the Republican presidential hopeful’s campaign has washed its hands of.

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His subsequent ambiguous declaration, “We can’t afford four more years of this,” had many quipping that he was campaigning for Trump now. Following a brief distraction and pointing at a rallygoer in the crowd who needed attention, the governor said, “I’ll bring her home here quick, folks: Look, Kamala Harris made it clear these guys want to instil fear.”

“They want to tell you that [you should] just get over it, it’s a fact of life. This is the way it is,” Walz added, as Fox News reported.

He then continued, “[Harris] simply has said it doesn’t have to be this way. It doesn’t have to be this way. We can’t afford four more years of this.”

Conservatives ridicule Kamala Harris’ running mate

Despite Walz speaking of school shootings and gun violence while alluding to Trump’s stance on gun rights, his confusing slip-up gave conservatives enough fodder to take aim at him.

“WALZ FINALLY TELLS THE TRUTH: ‘We can’t afford four more years’ of Kamala Harris,” Trump War Room, a social media account handled by Trump’s campaign taunted.

Sky News host and political commentator Rita Panahi wrote on X, “Dude is campaigning for Trump now?”

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The former President’s son, Donald Trump Jr., also joked, “I’m with Him/Tim.” He also pinned the post at the top of his X feed.

Former governor Scott Walker also responded to Walz’s video from the event with a simple “True”.

Donald Trump and gun rights

As for Trump’s take on firearm possession, the ex-president firmly asserted that he would “defend the Second Amendment” and oppose firearm limits if elected for another term in November despite narrowly escaping an assassination attempt in July.

“We’ll see a continuation of supporting and defending the Second Amendment, and really where that comes into play is, you know, the judiciary,” Chris LaCivita, a senior adviser to Trump’s presidential campaign said at an event hosted by guns rights group the US Concealed Carry Association at the Republican National Convention.