Somewhat old news now, but the people pictured wearing 'Walz's for Trump' shirts are indeed related to Tim Walz. Though they are cousins. And Tim Walz's own older brother is completely against him running for vice president.
That photo of people wearing ‘Nebraska Walz’s for Trump’ shirts? They’re distant cousins
https://archive.md/nd4KJ
>A sister of Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz says she doesn’t recognize the people wearing “Nebraska Walz’s for Trump” T-shirts in a photo that is making the rounds on social media. It turns out they are distant cousins.
>The photo shows eight smiling people wearing navy pro-Trump shirts, underneath a “Trump 2024 — Take America Back” sign. The photo was eventually reposted by former President Donald Trump, who wrote on his Truth Social platform: “It is a Great Honor to have your Endorsement. I look forward to meeting you soon!”
>The photo was first posted on X by Charles Herbster, a former candidate for governor in Nebraska who had Trump’s endorsement in the 2022 campaign. Herbster’s spokesperson, Rod Edwards, said the people in the photo are cousins to the Minnesota governor, who is now Kamala Harris’ running mate.
>“The family in the picture are the descendants of Francis Walz, who was brother to Tim Walz’s grandfather,” Edwards said. “They’re all Walzes and spouses.”
>The descendants of Francis Walz confirmed their relationship to Tim Walz in a text message to The Associated Press.
>“Shortly after Governor Tim Walz was named the Democrat Party Vice Presidential nominee, our family had a get-together. We had t-shirts made to show support for President Trump and J.D. Vance and took a group picture. That photo was shared with friends, and when we were asked for permission to post the picture, we agreed,” the written statement said.
>“The picture is real. The shirts are real. We are the Nebraska Walz family and we are related to Gov. Tim Walz, our grandfathers were brothers. The message on the shirts speaks for itself, “Nebraska Walzs for Trump.”
>Walz’s sister, Sandy Dietrich, of Alliance, Nebraska, said she suspected it might be people from that branch of the family. Dietrich and Walz’s father, James Walz, died of lung cancer in 1984 when the future congressman and Minnesota governor was just a teenager. His father had been the school superintendent in Valentine, Nebraska.
>“We weren’t close with them. We didn’t know them,” she said.
>In recent days, the New York Post has reported on Facebook comments from the governor’s older brother, Jeff Walz of Freeport, Florida, in which he said of his younger sibling: “The stories I could tell. Not the type of character you want making decisions about your future.” The 67-year-old also wrote that he was “100% opposed to all his ideology” and had thought about endorsing Trump, the Post reported.