Tim Walz, the governor of Minnesota, has been selected by Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris to serve as her own vice president in the event that she wins.
At a Philadelphia campaign rally on Tuesday, the Democratic presidential contender is anticipated to make an appearance with her choice for vice president.
Here are some facts on Walz.
1.Walz’s basic bio
The 60-year-old Walz grew up in a remote area of Nebraska. After meeting his wife while attending a public college in Nebraska, they relocated to her native Minnesota. Prior to his 2006 congressional campaign, he was employed in Mankato, Minnesota, as a football coach and social studies teacher at a high school. In 2022, he successfully stood for reelection as governor in 2018. He is now serving as the national campaign chairman for the Democratic governors.
2.Walz’s family
Hope and Gus are Walz’s two children together. He is married to Gwen. The governor talked earlier this year about his family’s difficulties becoming pregnant and the IVF process that helped them get there. “It’s not by chance that we named our daughter Hope,” remarked the father.
He attributes his opinion on gun control to his children and their ability to keep him in touch with Generation Z.
3.Military service
At the age of 17, Walz joined the Army National Guard, serving for 24 years until retiring as a command sergeant major in 2005. Given that Republican vice presidential contender JD Vance was a U.S. Marine Corps member, his military background may provide some contrast.
4.‘Weird’ attack
One of the first well-known Democrats to call Republican presidential contender Donald Trump “weird” was Walz. Harris and her campaign have continued to use this derogatory term.
He clarified lately that the goal of the anti-Trump discourse was to refrain from “lift[ing] this guy up.”
“In my view, he poses a threat to international democracy and peace,” Walz stated during a podcast interview with Pod Save America. “I believe there is a danger to your constitutional rights. That doesn’t inspire me and gets almost overwhelming. And putting them straight to the point, in my opinion, is this: This “weird” thing is an observation rather than an insult. And folks saying, “Well, this was developed by Gov. Walz.” No, I’m hearing this from people. This is what my Republican pals are telling me.
5.Folksy messenger
Walz often appears in casual clothes, wearing jeans, T-shirts and baseball caps at official events. He frequently discusses his rural roots, and he isn’t shy about using them to take digs at Vance, whose bestselling memoir, Hillbilly Elegy, documents the plight of Appalachia.
“I guarantee you he can’t shoot pheasants like I can,” Walz recently said of Vance.
The governor has also generated headlines and viral social media videos with some of his one-liners. Pointing to Vance’s 2021 comment suggesting Harris was a “childless cat lady,” Walz quipped back: “My God, they went after cat people. Good luck with that. Turn on the internet and see what cat people do when you go after them.”
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