Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D.) claimed he has "become friends with school shooters" in an apparent gaffe during the vice presidential debate on Tuesday.

"I sat in that office with those Sandy Hook parents, I’ve become friends with school shooters, I've seen it," Walz said when asked why he now supports an assault weapons ban.

Walz was speaking of the parents of the 20 children who were murdered during a 2012 elementary school shooting in Newtown, Connecticut. He was referring to his meeting with victims’ families, not the school shooter.

Walz, in his discussion on gun bans, also seemed to suggest that his running mate, Vice President Kamala Harris, is a hunter.

"I'm a hunter. I own guns. Kamala is, too," the governor said.