School teacher. Football Coach. Retired National Guardsman. Moderate congressman. Midwestern governor. Future vice president?
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz is set to deliver the biggest speech of his political career when he introduces himself to the masses at the Democratic National Convention and millions of potential voters watching at home Wednesday.
Walz, 60, was tapped to be Vice President Harris’s running mate just two weeks ago. Since then, he’s been a fixture on the campaign trail as the newly aligned Democratic duo forges a new path to battle former President Trump, following President Biden’s decision to drop his reelection bid.
Walz, who has charmed Democrats with his folksy personality, brings a Midwestern flavor to the ticket that is expected to be central to his convention address. A Harris-Walz campaign spokesperson said in a preview that Walz will focus on his biography, while also stressing the campaign’s focus on freedom and the country’s future.
“I think anyone who tried to script him or curate some carefully managed message from a laboratory — he just is who he is, and that’s what we’re gonna get. I’m certain of it, and that’s a great thing, because he’s so authentic and his enthusiasm is so contagious,” Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) told The Hill. “We just want a whole bunch of Tim Walz.”
Walz was picked for the second spot on the ticket after he showed a willingness to take on former President Trump and running mate Sen. JD Vance (Ohio) and a knack for endearing Democrats across the country.
He’s faced backlash for embellishments over his military background and misstating the type of fertility treatments he and his wife sought to have their children.
“My read on him is he’s a guy who likes to just barely cross the line,” Vance told reporters of his rival in Wisconsin this week. “Most of us have met people who just like to embellish a little bit up to the line and then they cross the line, and I think that’s clearly what Tim Walz did.”
But Huffman said Walz has the making of a “a joyful attack dog” to serve by Harris’s side that will be on display during his DNC remarks.
“He’s a happy warrior. There’s an enthusiasm and an optimism that he just exudes,” he said.
Walz is widely credited with coming up with “weird’ as a way to check Trump and Vance, a line that quickly stuck and has sense been embraced partywide.
Minnesota first lady Gwen Walz will introduce her husband before his speech. She has been seen at many of the week’s high-profile activities and enthusiastically responded as former President Obama joked about Walz’s penchant for flannel attire.
“You can tell those flannel shirts he wears – they don’t come from a political consultant,” Obama said. “They came from his closet, and they’ve been through some stuff.”
Gwen Walz could be seen clapping and laughing in the crowd, mouthing “It’s true!” about the joke.
