Vice President Kamala Harris, the Democratic presidential candidate, has chosen Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate in the November election.
The governor was not at the top of the options until the last few weeks, but Walz, a former American football coach, has quickly transformed from a little-known Midwestern governor into a Democratic star. His rise has been fueled by his attacks on former President Donald J. Trump, including statements that Republicans are promoting “strange” ideas. Democrats hope he can appeal to Midwestern voters.
In an Instagram post announcing her selection, Harris emphasized her running mate’s record.
“One of the things that stood out to me about Tim is how deep his convictions are about fighting for middle-class families,” Harris wrote in the post.
But Republicans see openings to portray this record as overly liberal.Walz’s Political Positions
Walz has worked with the Democrat-controlled Legislature in his state to enact an ambitious agenda of liberal policies: free college tuition for low-income students, free meals for school-age children, legal recreational marijuana, and protections for transgender individuals. He has also advocated for climate issues as governor and faced criticism for his response to the George Floyd protests.Walz Comes from Rural America
It would be hard to find a more vivid representative of the American heartland than Walz. Born in West Point, Nebraska, a community of about 3,500 people northwest of Omaha, Walz joined the Army National Guard and became a teacher in Nebraska.
He and his wife moved to Mankato, southern Minnesota, in the 1990s. It was there that he taught social studies and coached the Mankato West High School football team.
Walz served 24 years in the Army National Guard before retiring from a field artillery battalion in 2005 as command sergeant major, one of the highest ranks in the army.
He and his wife had their two children through in vitro fertilization. It took seven years of fertility treatments for them to have their first daughter, whom they named Hope. Walz spoke publicly about the experience after a decision by the Alabama Supreme Court this year overturned in vitro fertilization treatment there.A Rural Liberal with Great Communication Skills with Conservatives
In his first run for Congress, Walz defeated an incumbent Republican. This was in 2006 when he won in a predominantly rural congressional district in southern Minnesota against six-term Congressman Gil Gutknecht.
In his first term as governor, Walz faced a Legislature divided between a Democrat-led House and a Republican-controlled Senate that resisted his proposals to use higher taxes to increase funding for schools, healthcare, and roads. But he and lawmakers negotiated compromises that made the state’s divided government still seem productive.
Things became easier for Walz in his second term after he defeated Republican Scott Jensen, a doctor known nationally as a vaccine skeptic. Democrats gained control of both legislative chambers, paving the way for a more liberal course in state government, aided by a massive budget surplus.
Walz and lawmakers eliminated nearly all state restrictions on abortion enacted in the past by Republicans, protected gender-affirming care for transgender youth, and legalized recreational marijuana use.
Rejecting Republican calls to use the state budget surplus to cut taxes, Democrats funded free school meals for children, free tuition at public colleges for students from families earning less than $80,000 a year, a paid medical and family leave program, and health insurance coverage regardless of a person’s immigration status.A Trump Critic
Walz called Republican candidate Donald Trump and his running mate JD Vance “just strange” in an MSNBC interview last month. The word quickly became a theme for Harris and other Democrats, and it has the chance to be a rallying cry in the undoubtedly strange 2024 election.Source: AP