Republicans kick off Walz attacks with focus on George Floyd protests

Republicans are giddy at Vice President Harris picking Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) as her running mate and are quickly kicking off their attacks against him, headlined by his handling four years ago of the protests that followed the murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis. 

House Majority Leader Steve Scalise (R-La.) posted on the social platform X that Walz “let rioters burn Minneapolis to the ground in 2020.” House GOP Chair Elise Stefanik (R-N.Y.) said in a statement that Walz “supported BLM rioters who torched Minneapolis to the ground.” And Sen. JD Vance (R-Ohio), former President Trump’s running mate, brought up the demonstrations in a campaign speech Tuesday.

“You think the black business leaders in Minneapolis are grateful — the working-class business leaders are grateful — that Tim Walz allowed rioters to burn down their business?” Vance said in Philadelphia.

The focus on the protests against police brutality in 2020 — which started in Minneapolis after a police officer killed Floyd by kneeling on his neck and spread nationwide — offers a preview of the Republican campaign against Walz, and the Democratic ticket as a whole.

The GOP has been struggling since President Biden dropped out and Harris became the probable Democratic nominee, providing the party in power a major shot in the arm in the form of both donations and enthusiasm. At the same time, some Republicans have expressed dissatisfaction with Vance’s performance on the campaign trail and dismay that the Trump campaign seemed unprepared for Harris’s rise.

The choice of Walz, a former member of Congress and second-term governor who has backed a number of policies favored by progressives, has provided Republicans with a new target that checks many of the boxes for GOP attacks.

Republicans have called him a socialist and said he and Harris make up the most liberal presidential ticket in U.S. history.

Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) told The Hill in an interview Tuesday that Harris picking Walz “makes it easier for us.”

“He is a far-left candidate and choice. I frankly thought that she might try to choose a moderate, but obviously she has proven once again who she is,” Johnson said.

One GOP operative told The Hill that Walz “might come across as a Midwestern nice dude, but he’s a socialist and in a way that the rest of America is not. He’s going to be a problem for them.”

The operative rattled off a list of issues, including Waltz giving illegal migrants driver’s licenses and instituting so-called red flag laws, allowing authorities to remove guns from people who are deemed to be a risk to themselves or others. 

A second GOP operative said Walz’s policy positions make him “a Republican oppo research gold mine.”

“And that’s before we get to the fact that Minneapolis burned down on his watch,” the first operative added, referring to the 2020 protests.

Sen. Laphonza Butler (D-Calif.), a top ally of and former aide to Harris, took issue with the characterization that Walz moves the ticket to the left, saying his actions as governor were “balanced.”

But top Republicans quickly latched onto Walz’s handling of the protests and argued that he was too slow to respond to them. 

In a press blast, the MAGA Inc. political action committee supporting Trump pointed to news stories about Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey (D) accusing Walz of not acting fast enough to send National Guard backup, and to a report from Minnesota state Senate Republicans that said Walz’s failure to recognize the severity of the riots led to “delayed reaction and increased violence.”

For Republicans, Walz’s connection to the Minneapolis demonstrations fits in with their focus on crime in major U.S. cities and with a favorite line of attack against Harris: that she posted on social media in 2020 to raise money for a fund that paid bail for protesters in Minneapolis who were arrested.

While bashing Walz, Stefanik said that Harris “fundraised to bail out violent criminals from prison,” while Scalise charged that Walz had been soft on “the same rioters Kamala Harris raised money to bail out.”

“They’re a dangerous duo that’ll let crime destroy our communities,” Scalise said.

The Harris campaign and Waltz’s gubernatorial office did not immediately respond to a request for comment, but The New York Times reported that a Walz spokesperson said that 2020 had been “a tragic time for our state and our country” and that “Governor Walz took action and deployed the National Guard to keep our city safe.”

And despite the discontent with the Minneapolis riots, Walz was reelected to the governorship in 2022.

Harris settling on Walz was also welcome news to Republicans who had become resigned to her picking Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro (D). Many had expected that the electoral factors would rule the day and Shapiro’s ability to help deliver the Keystone State’s crucial 19 electoral votes would be the deciding factor. 

“Why the hell wouldn’t you choose the governor of the most important state that can run around the commonwealth for an unlimited amount of time doing ribbon-cuttings and openings and, yes, their official government business, but he’s the VP nominee,” the GOP operative said. 

“Shapiro was the choice you make if you wanted to win an election,” the operative continued. “Tim Walz is the choice you make when you’re scared the left doesn’t trust you yet.”

Butler argued that the vice president’s decision likely came down to “what kind of person she wanted to be able to spend that much time with” and who could be an effective messenger on the campaign trail and eventually as her deputy in office. 

Walz’s 12-year career as a member of the House before he became governor — unique among Harris, Trump and Vance — also provides opportunities to find more dirt on him.

“We will certainly be combing through Walz’s very long voting record in the House to pull out anything we can use,” the second GOP operative said.

Mychael Schnell contributed.