Claim:
Video shows vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz dancing to Beyoncé’s song “Texas Hold ‘Em” in a leather crop top and pants with a red cowboy hat.
Rating:
Fake ( About this rating? )
Context:
Tim Walz does not appear in this video clip. It's an edited version of an older video in which Walz’s face was superimposed over that of the original dancer.
In early September 2024, slightly less than two months before the 2024 presidential election, a video went viral purporting to show Democratic vice presidential candidate Gov. Tim Walz dancing in a leather crop top, leather pants and a red cowboy hat to Beyoncé's hit song "Texas Hold 'em."
The video, posted on TikTok, also went viral on X and shows an individual with a blurred face but with features similar to those of the Minnesota governor, dancing vigorously with his midriff showing. A caption over the video stated, "VP candidate Walz of the "free world" OMFG… Help us…"
However, this clip was manipulated and does not show Walz. The video taken from a dancer's Instagram account and has been edited to change the facial features of the leather-clad individual to appear like Walz's. As such, we rate this video as "Fake."
Using Google's reverse-image search tool, we searched for its origin. We found no authentic evidence connecting Walz to such a video. We looked closely at the individual's face and noted that it was heavily blurred, and became sharper as the individual twisted his head back and around, indicating that Walz's face had been superimposed over that of the original subject.
Numerous commenters recognized the video as having originated — before it was edited — on the Instagram account of Matthew Krumpe, who describes himself as a dancer and drag artist. It was originally posted in February 2024, long before Vice President Kamala Harris entered the presidential race and before she announced Walz as her running mate in August 2024.
The video shows an individual doing the exact same dance to the same song, with the same outfit and background, though his features were not blurred in this case. We reached out to the owner of the Instagram account, who confirmed the video belonged to him and had been filmed on a cruise in February.
The original caption stated: "This ain't Texas, and if anyone walks into my shot again im quitting making content and jumping off this boat."
https://www.instagram.com/krumpmasterkrump/reel/C3hb9QauS0g/
Krumpe told us: "The fact that people are using a video that promotes happiness and joy to try and insinuate that Tim is unfit for office is so ridiculous."
It's clear that the original unedited video was posted before Harris and Walz entered the election race and was heavily manipulated before it went viral.
Sources:
Evon, Dan. "Snopes Tips: A Guide To Performing Reverse Image Searches." Snopes, 22 Mar. 2022, https://www.snopes.com//articles/400681/how-to-perform-reverse-image-searches/. " target="blank">https://www.snopes.com//articles/400681/how-to-perform-reverse-image-searches/.">https://www.snopes.com//articles/400681/how-to-perform-reverse-image-searches/. Accessed 10 Sept. 2024.
"Harris Introduces New Running Mate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as the 'Vice President America Deserves.'" AP News, 6 Aug. 2024, https://apnews.com/article/harris-running-mate-philadelphia-rally-multistate-tour-02c7ebce765deef0161708b29fe0069e. " target="blank">https://apnews.com/article/harris-running-mate-philadelphia-rally-multistate-tour-02c7ebce765deef0161708b29fe0069e.">https://apnews.com/article/harris-running-mate-philadelphia-rally-multistate-tour-02c7ebce765deef0161708b29fe0069e. Accessed 10 Sept. 2024.
"Kamala Harris Launches Her Campaign for President." Kamala Harris, 25 July 2024, YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHky_Xopyrw. " target="blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHky_Xopyrw.">https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sHky_Xopyrw. Accessed 10 Sept. 2024.
Local News
