Did Tim Walz Misrepresent His Experience with Fertility Treatment?
Summary from the AllSides News Team
Kamala Harris' running mate, Gov. Tim Walz, initially indicated he and his wife used in vitro fertilization (IVF) to conceive their children, his wife recently said they used a different procedure: intrauterine insemination (IUI).
The Details: Walz had referenced using IVF in his speeches and interviews. His wife subsequently said that they used IUI, which does not hold the same level of political controversy as IVF, as it does not risk destroying unused embryos.
For Context: IVF involves fertilizing an egg outside the womb and then implanting it, often generating unused embryos, while IUI involves directly inserting sperm into the uterus at the time of ovulation. The Alabama Supreme Court's ruling in February determined that frozen embryos should be considered children under state law, temporarily halting IVF procedures, before a law was passed in March to protect IVF.
How The Media Covered It: The Washington Examiner (Lean Right bias), American Thinker (Right bias), and Washington Free Beacon (Right bias) highlighted Walz's "misrepresentation" of the fertility treatment, arguing that the distinction between IVF and IUI matters and the conflation is being used to frame pro-life advocates and Republicans as anti-family. The New York Times (Lean Left bias) downplayed Walz's correction, saying, "Many have assumed that his family relied on I.V.F." before adding, "In April, the Tim Walz for Governor campaign office mailed out a fund-raising letter in an envelope that read: 'My wife and I used I.V.F. to start a family.'" The New York Times referred to the IUI correction as a "clarification."
Featured Coverage of this Story
From the Center
Tim Walz has described his family’s IVF experience. But they used a different procedure![AllSides Media Bias Rating: Center AllSides Media Bias Rating: Center](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/bias-center.png)
![](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/styles/feature_image_300x200/public/66c60bded66560.99332142.jpeg?itok=0_FG3OAb)
In March, after an Alabama court halted in vitro fertilization procedures in the state, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz decided to speak about his struggle to have children with his wife, Gwen. The same month, his team sent a fundraising email titled “our IVF journey” sharing an article that referenced “his family’s IVF journey” in the headline.
And earlier this month, Walz criticized Ohio Sen. JD Vance, the Republican candidate for vice president, by saying, “If it was up to him, I wouldn’t have a family because of IVF.”
In introducing...
From the Right
Tim Walz Said His Kids Were ‘Born Through’ IVF. That’s Not True![AllSides Media Bias Rating: Right AllSides Media Bias Rating: Right](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/bias-right.png)
![](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/styles/feature_image_300x200/public/4436270.jpg?itok=QJmz0SZo)
Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz, already under fire for embellishing his military service, misrepresented the fertility treatments his wife received to have children. Walz repeatedly said on the campaign trail and as Minnesota governor that he and his wife, Gwen, conceived their two children through in-vitro fertilization. "Thank God for IVF. My wife and I have two beautiful children," he told MSNBC’s Jen Psaki in July. Walz fundraised off "his family's IVF Journey" in an email to donors in March. Earlier this month, he accused Republicans of wanting to...
From the Left
Walz Family Fertility Journey Ran Not Through I.V.F. but Another Common Treatment![AllSides Media Bias Rating: Lean Left AllSides Media Bias Rating: Lean Left](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/bias-leaning-left.png)
![](https://www.allsides.com/sites/default/files/styles/feature_image_300x200/public/4429599.jpg?itok=kWboTf_N)
As Gov. Tim Walz of Minnesota has introduced himself to Americans through stump speeches across the country in recent weeks, he has alluded to a journey through infertility for his family while warning that conservatives want to restrict in vitro fertilization. “Even if we wouldn’t make the same choice for ourselves, there’s a golden rule: Mind your own damn business,” Mr. Walz said on the night that Vice President Kamala Harris introduced him in their first joint rally in Philadelphia. “Look, that includes I.V.F. And this gets personal for me...
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