Posts tagged with "Progressive populist folk hero"

August 7, 2024

Vice President Kamala Harris has made a decision on her running mate, with four people close to the process saying that Governor Tim Walz of Minnesota is her choice, reports CNN.

The selection caps the Midwestern Democrat’s short but swift ascent from a relative unknown to a leading driver of the party’s attacks on Donald Trump and the MAGA agenda.

At press time, Harris had not formally called Walz to offer him the position, a source familiar with process told CNN.

A former educator, Walz is currently in his second term as Minnesota governor and chairs the Democratic Governors Association. He previously served 12 years in Congress—representing a conservative-leaning rural district that, both before and after his tenure, has been mostly dominated by Republicans.

In the time leading up to his selection as Harris’ running mate, Walz had first been an outspoken defender of Joe Biden following his disastrous debate performance as calls for the president to end his reelection bid escalated. When Biden did drop out, Walz endorsed Harris the next day and has since emerged as a reliable, energetic and cutting advocate for the presumptive Democratic nominee.

Picking Walz also underscores the Harris campaign’s focus on a path to victory that puts a premium on the “blue wall” states of the Midwest. Minnesota is slightly outside that sphere, but Walz, once a high school football coach, has evolved during his time in office into something of a progressive populist folk hero—the exact kind of pugilistic voice that Democrats taking on Trump are keen to highlight.

He has over the past week delivered a handful of memorable haymakers against Republicans, although his most notable contribution has been a determination to label the GOP, especially its presidential ticket of Trump and Ohio Senator. JD Vance. Walz has referred to the duo as “weird dudes,” before lighting into their political agenda.

The phrase has stuck, becoming a central meme in the new, post-Biden version of the campaign, a development that is delighting Democrats and apparently frustrating many on the right.

During recent remarks at a “White Dudes for Harris” fundraiser, Walz made a rough-and-ready case for the vice president before would-be small-dollar donors.

“How often in 100 days do you get to change the trajectory of the world? How often in 100 days do you get to do something that’s going to impact generations to come?” Walz asked. “And how often in the world do you make that bastard wake up afterwards and know that a Black woman kicked his a**, sent him on the road?”

The line was well received on the call and almost immediately grabbed headlines. For many Democrats, at least, the online virality—with apologies to Biden’s “Dark Brandon” meme—was the kind they have pined for over the past few years.

Research contact: @CNN