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News of Tim Walz Hosting Pro-Hitler Imam Gets Worse With Unearthed Footage

Rebecca Downs
Rebecca Downs  |  August 13, 2024 5:45 PM

This article has been updated to include how even CNN has covered the scandal involving Walz and Imam Zaman.

Last Friday, days after he was selected as Vice President Kamala Harris' running mate, it was reported that Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) had hosted Asad Zaman, an imam who spoke out against Israel on October 7 and shared pro-Hitler propaganda. While the Harris-Walz campaign claimed that Walz had no personal relationship with Zaman, a new report is out showing otherwise.

On Tuesday morning, the Washington Examiner's Gabe Kaminsky, who previously reported on the relationship, posted footage of remarks from Walz about Zaman. A longer version of such remarks has been shared to YouTube. 

The video shows Walz expressing his thanks for the imam as he also notes, "I am a teacher. So when I see a master teacher, I know it. And, um, over the time we've spent together, one of the things, uh, one of the things I've had the privilege of is seeing the things in life through the eye of a master teacher to try and get the understanding."

A write-up from Kaminsky notes that such footage is from 2018, when Walz was running for his first term as governor. The event in question took place on February 16, 2018 and was hosted by the Minnesota’s Muslim American Society, which Zaman is affiliated with. 

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As the report also mentioned:

News of the footage comes after a spokesperson for Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential campaign said in a Friday statement that Walz does not “have a personal relationship” with Asad Zaman of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota. That claim was in response to a Washington Examiner report on how Walz, the 2024 Democratic vice presidential nominee, repeatedly hosted the imam at events as the governor of Minnesota. At several of those events, Zaman also spoke before Walz.

...

Under Walz, Minnesota has awarded over $100,000 in funding to Zaman’s organization, records show.

Spokespeople for Walz and Harris did not reply to requests for comment.

During his remarks, Walz also spoke about an attack at the Dar al Farooq Islamic Center in Minnesota. "It was imam talking [saying that] 'in those times is where we find who we are, in those times is where we really see," he said. Walz even touted how he had lived and spent time in China, while promoting "the beautiful diversity of the world."

He also discussed a "lesson" learned from the imam, which is to "make the world a little fairer."

Speaking as a then congressman, Walz offered that "Congress is a very broken place right now," and said "it is a place that feeds on fear more than hope," "division more than unity," and is "a place that feeds on trying to find someone to be 'the other' rather than my brother." Walz made clear "I understood that."

"I have pushed back through my whole career on the demonization of Islam, on the demonization of immigrants," Walz also said, going on to talk about "a renewed commitment."

"In this space, Imam Zaman is right on this, there is Islamophobia, there is a hatred that is being stirred," Walz went on to share, also speaking about his "responsibilities to see you and to hear you."

Imam Zaman has posted pro-Hamas and anti-Israeli comments since October 7, when Israel was attacked by Hamas terrorists. He's shared problematic content for years, though, including before Walz made his comments above.

As we covered in last Friday's coverage of Zaman's comments:

On October 7, the very same day that Israel was attacked, Zaman shared a post to his Facebook page from the Muslim American Society. "MAS STANDS IN SOLIDARITY WITH PALESTINIANS AGAINST ISRAELI ATTACKS," the post claimed, before ranting against "Israeli occupation" and "inhumane blockade of Gaza." The post made no mention of the 1,200 Israelis killed by Hamas terrorists, or of the torture, rape, and kidnapping that occurred.

The report also mentions Zaman using his Facebook to share a Hamas press release in 2016, as well as an anti-Israeli blog post from 2014 on "Israeli Atrocities in Palestine, The Real Terrorism in Palestine." 

In 2015, Zaman shared a link to a pro-Hitler film "The Greatest Story Never Told," which is described as a "propaganda movie... released in 2013 and is a favorite among antisemites and QAnon conspiracy influencers, according to the Anti-Defamation League."

Zaman also took issue with Democratic lawmakers expressing their support for Israel after the attacks, including Rep. Katie Porter (D-CA) and Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party Chairman Ken Martin on October 10.

As Martin shared how he was "beyond heartbroken" as he had visited the Kfar Aza Kibbutz and knew of Israelis who had been "brutally killed or kidnapped," the imam still posted to ask if he had visited Gaza. He also railed against "apartheid Israel" with regards to how the "DFL cannot be joined at the hip to apartheid Israel and still hope to court the Muslim vote."

Zaman has continued to post and repost anti-Israeli propaganda posts, including accusing our ally in the Middle East of "ethnic cleansing through genocide and purposeful starvation."

The subsequent report has led to a rather unflattering trend over X, as "Walz Praises Hitler-Supporting Imam." This problem for the Harris-Walz campaign certainly doesn't seem to be going away. 

If anything, the Israel-Hamas conflict and concerns about antisemitism in the Democratic Party may be only getting worse. The DNC will take place in Chicago next week, where local authorities appear to have catered to pro-Hamas protesters while making it difficult for pro-Israel groups to rally, according to a report last week from Jewish Insider. Meanwhile, Iran could attack Israel any day now.

Larry O'Connor also addressed the unearthed video footage earlier on Tuesday, highlighting how "Tim Walz’s Damage Control Over Hitler-Adoring Cleric Debunked by New Footage."

Kaminsky also posted how even CNN has written about the relationship between Walz and Zaman, that he "once praised Muslim leader who shared antisemitic propaganda."