Vance laughs off CNN fact-checking his joke that Walz finally ‘visited a combat zone’ at DNC in Chicago

Republican vice presidential candidate Sen. JD Vance, R-Ohio, mocked CNN reporter Alayna Treene for fact-checking a joke he made about Gov. Tim Walz, D-Minn.

During a rally in Kenosah, Wisconsin, on Tuesday, Vance referenced the Democratic vice presidential candidate and his upcoming address at the Democratic National Convention, by spotlighting the ongoing controversy surrounding Walz's description of his military record.

"My little theory about why they decided to have the convention in Chicago is, you know, Tim Walz has been going around saying that he served in war, and maybe they did it in Chicago, so that he could actually accurately say that he visited a combat zone," Vance remarked as the crowd began cheering.

JD Vance mocked Tim Walz lying about his military record. (Getty Images)

Vance's joke is a reference to the Harris campaign sharing a video of Walz at a campaign event in 2018, where he declared, "We can make sure those weapons of war, that I carried in war, is the only place where those weapons are at." A CNN correspondent later fact-checked that video saying "there is no evidence" he carried weapons in combat.

JD VANCE SAYS HE WANTS A 'REAL' DEBATE WITH OPPONENT TIM WALZ, NOT A 'FAKE NEWS MEDIA GARBAGE' ONE

After the event, Treene corrected Vance’s joke, saying the location was chosen over a year ago.

"Vance in WI says his ‘little theory’ about why Democrats chose to host their convention in Chicago is ‘so that [Walz] could actually, accurately say that he went, he visited a combat zone.’ Democrats selected Chicago in April 2023 — long before Biden even considered dropping out," Treene wrote.

"lmao," Vance replied.

Other social media users also mocked Treene’s post..

"The journos are so dumb and broken they’re now fact-checking obvious jokes," The Federalist co-founder Sean Davis wrote.

Manhattan Institute senior fellow Christopher Rufo exclaimed, "They're fact-checking jokes now."

"When you fact check a joke... it makes your entire ‘journalism’ career the joke. It also makes CNN the joke," comedian Tim Young remarked.

"All jokes must be fact-checked!" Wall Street Journal film critic Kyle Smith joked.

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Republican Presidential candidate, former U.S. president, Donald Trump, left, poses for photos with Republican Vice Presidential candidate, U.S. Sen. J.D. Vance, (R-OH), before making remarks to a crowd during an event on August 21, 2024 in Asheboro, North Carolina at the North Carolina Aviation Museum and Hall of Fame.  (Photo by Melissa Sue Gerrits/Getty Images)

On Wednesday, Vance made another joke about Walz’s "stolen valor" during former President Trump’s first outdoor rally since the assassination attempt against him.

"What won’t Stolen Valor Tim Walz fib about? In fact, I believe in his next speech he’s probably going to say he survived an assassination attempt in Pennsylvania. I think that’s what Tim Walz is going to claim next time," Vance said during the North Carolina rally.

Lindsay Kornick is an associate editor for Fox News Digital. Story tips can be sent to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. and on Twitter: @lmkornick.