Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz said on Tuesday he “misspoke” when he previously said he’d visited Hong Kong in the spring of 1989 during protests in China’s Tiananmen Square but insisted he “was in Hong Kong and China” during the pro-democracy protests.

Newly unearthed reports contradict previous claims made by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz about his travel to China, including a claim that the Democratic vice presidential nominee was in Hong Kong for a teaching position in 1989 during the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests that ended in hundreds of protesters killed by the Chinese government.

Tim Walz conceded Tuesday night during the vice presidential debate that he “misspoke” in the past when he claimed that he was in Hong Kong during the crackdown in Tiananmen Square in which China’s military attacked and killed pro-democracy demonstrators.

Newly unearthed reports contradict previous claims made by Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz about his travel to China, including a claim that the Democratic vice presidential nominee traveled to China for a teaching position in 1989 during the Tiananmen Square pro-democracy protests that ended in hundreds of protesters killed by the Chinese government.

A Nebraska newspaper reported twice that Walz wasn't planning on leaving for China until August 1989, more than two months after the Tiananmen Square massacre.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz attempts to clarify remarks he made about being in Tiananmen Square during the 1989 pro-democracy protests during the CBS News Vice Presidential Debate. (Courtesy: CBS News)

"I’m a knucklehead at times," the Democratic running mate says, conceding he was in the US when Chinese forces crushed protests.