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MINNEAPOLIS - Since Vice President Kamala Harris chose Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate, critics are sounding off on Walz’s handling of the COVID-19 pandemic and riots in the aftermath of George Floyd's death.
More than four years ago, governors across the country, including Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, issued executive orders aimed at slowing the spread of COVID-19.
During the pandemic, Walz enforced orders including mask mandates, stay-home-orders, and issued temporary school closures and restaurant closures.
Businesses and restaurants also faced penalties and lawsuits from the state if they opened their doors with restrictions in place.
Tim Walz speaks during a campaign rally for US vice president and 2024 Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris in Eau Claire, Wisconsin, August 7, 2024. (Photo by KAMIL KRZACZYNSKI/AFP via Getty Images)
No, National Guard didn’t enforce COVID-19 curfew with paintball guns
In the aftermath of George Floyd’s death, protests broke out and Walz issued a curfew at the time which stated no one would be allowed on the streets of the Twin Cities between 8 p.m. and 6 a.m. except for first responders, members of the media, and people going to and from work.
Walz mobilized the Minnesota National Guard to assist Minneapolis police to ensure law and order as looting and fires erupted across both cities.
Anyone who violated the order would be arrested.
Video showing what appeared to be the state’s National Guard and the Minneapolis Police Department patrolling the streets of a neighborhood in Minneapolis and shooting paint canisters at residents resurfaced on Tuesday as Walz’s past continues to be scrutinized.
Some on social media claimed the actions of the police were ordered by Walz to ensure residents adhered to COVID-19 lockdown orders, but this is not true, according to multiple reports from 2020.
The video, which is believed to originally be from May 30, 2020, does show members of the National Guard and MPD ensuring people were adhering to curfew orders that were set by Walz following protests after Floyd’s death, USA Today reported back in 2020.
Officers can be heard yelling at residents to "get inside!" and when some residents continued to stay outside, one officer could be heard saying "light them up" before paint canisters were fired at a resident’s front porch.
COVID-19 lockdown restrictions in Minnesota
On March 13, 2020, Walz issued Executive Order 2001, declaring a "peacetime emergency" due to the pandemic threatening the lives of Minnesotans. This continued until the state Legislature ended it in June 2021.
On March 15, Executive Order 2002 ordered the temporary closure of public schools.
The following day, Executive Order 2004 ordered the closure of bars, restaurants, and other places of public accommodation. Then-President Donald Trump issued guidelines to limit gatherings of more than 10 people that same day, March 16.
As the pandemic waned and spiked, so did policies to shift the needs of both public safety and economic stability.
On March 27, 2020, people within the state of Minnesota were "ordered to stay at home or in their place of residence except to engage in the Activities and Critical Sector," according to Executive Order 2020.
The order was scheduled through Friday, April 10, 2020, at 5 p.m. It would later be extended, and the definition of what was and was not a "critical employee" would become heavily debated.
He also had a 10-month-long mask mandate that became a political dividing point.
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Curfew imposed following George Floyd’s death
Later that year, Walz issued an order which implemented a curfew following riots, fires, and looting in the aftermath of protests on the death of George Floyd, a black man who died in police custody. The curfews came hours after one of the officers involved in Floyd's death was taken into custody and arrested for murder.
Walz said at the time the state had taken the lead in responding to the protests over Floyd’s death, which had devolved into rioting and looting in both Minneapolis and St. Paul and surrounding communities.
The curfew was eventually extended, and lasted a full week.
Trump ‘fully’ agreed with Walz during unrest in 2020
A recorded conversation between Walz and Trump in 2020, revealed Walz being praised for his handling of the May 2020 civil unrest in Minneapolis.
The recording was released by the Kamala Harris Campaign following claims from JD Vance that Walz "encouraged" the riots following Floyd's killing at the hands of former Minneapolis police officer Derek Chauvin.
Gov. Walz's office has not responded to a request for comment from FOX Television Stations.