VP Harris’ Former Partner Breaks Down During Live TV Segment
Montel Williams, former daytime talk show host and ex-boyfriend of Vice President Kamala Harris, became emotional on CNN during a discussion panel focused on the polarizing state of American politics.
Williams, who graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and served 22 years, ultimately reaching the rank of lieutenant commander, was part of a panel addressing remarks made by Sen. J.D. Vance, Trump’s running mate and a Marine Corps combat veteran, about Harris's running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz.
Governor Walz, who served 24 years in the U.S. Army, now faces scrutiny over past claims about combat service he did not experience, as well as his decision to retire before his unit deployed to Iraq. Walz also stated he retired at the rank of sergeant major, though the Minnesota National Guard clarified he had attended but did not complete the Army’s Sergeant Major Academy, retiring instead as a Master Sergeant.
Vance criticized Walz's military record as a “stolen valor” issue.
During the CNN segment, Williams told host Sara Sidner and conservative panelist Scott Jennings that Walz has “a right to say what he said” regarding his military history, then turned to praise Harris and express concerns about a potential new civil war in the United States.
“It’s her tenor. The tenor is, ‘Let’s unite, not divide,’” he said, emphasizing the need for more conversations, even those like they were having on the show. Williams continued, “though I disagree with what you’ve said, we’ve disagreed. We’ve also kind of just slightly realized that we could turn that beach ball just a little bit and see a different panel, see a different point of view.”
“See a point of commonality,” Sidner added.
Williams then commended Harris for her efforts to “make America understand that what unites us is far greater than what divides us.” He urged people to listen, warning against the influence of extremists who feel that if “my side doesn’t win, then burn the whole thing down.” He continued, “We can’t do this.”
Reflecting on his own service, Williams added, “You know, folks like me, and we’ve probably got 40 million veterans alive, the majority of them put their hand up in the air and said, ‘I do solemnly swear and affirm that I will support and defend the Constitution against all enemies, foreign and domestic,’ period.” As his voice began to falter, he added, “That’s why I put on the uniform, to protect this for your generation, your generation. Let’s start focusing on how we protect this and stop firing up those idiots who really think that they can — because, at the end of the day, what do you want? You want to eat out of the garbage can? Because that’s what’s going to happen.”
Recalling the toll of the past, Williams emphasized, “If we go to a civil war, remember, more deaths in the American Civil War than any other conflict since.”
“Brother against brother,” Sidner echoed.
“Are we gonna do it again? Sorry,” Williams said, apologizing as he grew emotional.
“Don’t be sorry. This is a serious — this is a really, really serious moment in our history,” Sidner responded.
Meanwhile, at a press conference earlier this week, Vance criticized Walz: “What really bothers me about Tim Walz isn’t even the positions he’s taken, though certainly he has been a far-left radical. What really bothers me about Tim Walz, as a Marine who served his country in uniform, is when the United States Marine Corps, when the United States of America asked me to go to Iraq to serve my country, I did it. I did what they asked me to do, and I did it honorably and I’m very proud of that service.”
Vance added, “When Tim Walz was asked by his country to go to Iraq, you know what he did? He dropped out of the Army and allowed his unit to go without him—a fact he’s been criticized for aggressively by many of the people he served with.”