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.

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 (D), pressed at the vice presidential debate on false statements he made in which he said he was present during the Tiananmen Square protests in 1989, said: “I’m a knucklehead at times.

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)

Walz stumbles and calls himself a 'knucklehead' when asked about Tiananmen during debateSource CBS News Presidential Debate

The Minnesota governor said he "misspoke" on the longstanding claim during the vice presidential debate Tuesday.

: A portion of the vice presidential debate was devoted to each candidate’s gaffes. Tim Walz asked about his past claim that he was in Hong Kong when the Tiananmen Square unrest and massacre occurred in 1989.