Walz Highlights Small Town Roots as He Accepts Vice Presidential Nomination

CHICAGO—Accepting his party’s nomination for vice president at the Democratic National Convention, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz gave a significant speech on Thursday evening.

“It’s the honor of my life to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States,” Walz declared to a cheering crowd on the convention’s third night.

“We’re all here tonight for one beautiful, simple reason: We love this country.”

During his speech, Walz focused on his personal background, occasionally taking aim at JD Vance, the Republican vice presidential nominee.

He began by highlighting his roots in a rural town.

“I grew up in Valentine, Nebraska, a town of 400 people. I had 24 kids in my school class, and none of them went to Yale,” he shared.

“And I‘ll tell you what, growing up in a small town like that, you’ll learn how to take care of each other.”

He went on to discuss his military service, political career, and experience teaching in public schools.

“I learned how to work across the aisle on issues like growing rural economies and supporting veterans, and I learned how to compromise without compromising my values,” he stated.

Towards the end of his speech, Walz drew on his background as a high school football coach to deliver a “pep talk” on the upcoming election.

“It’s the fourth quarter, we are down a field goal, but we’re on offense, and we’ve got the ball,” he declared. “We are driving down the field and boy do we have the right team. Kamala Harris is tough, Kamala Harris is experienced and Kamala Harris is ready.”

Vice President Kamala Harris selected Walz as her running mate on Aug. 6 following a two-week vetting process.

He was the highest-ranking enlisted soldier to serve in Congress and was rated the seventh most bipartisan representative in the 114th Congress by the Lugar Center at Georgetown University.

In 2018, Walz defeated Republican Hennepin County Commissioner Jeff Johnson to become the 41st governor of Minnesota.

Walz used his acceptance speech to share his personal story, allowing Americans to better know the Minnesota governor.

“I’ve loved Tim since we were teachers at the same high school,” his wife, Gwen Walz, stated on X on Aug 22.

“Whether it’s on a farm, fishing boat, or football field, his commitment to service comes from the values we grew up with. I’m so happy the world now gets to know him.”

Walz is seen as popular with Midwestern and union voters and is sometimes highlighted for his military background. His appeal to rural voters and military veterans could help him in blue-wall states such as Michigan and Wisconsin.

The Minnesota governor, however, has come under increasing criticism from Republicans for allegedly misrepresenting his military service.

Walz, however, pushed back against such criticism and defended his military service record.

“I firmly believe you should never denigrate another person’s service record,” Walz said at an event in Los Angeles on Aug. 13.

Rural, Progressive Appeal

Rep. Dean Phillips (D-Minn.), who briefly ran a longshot campaign against Biden, lauded Walz’s background.

“Tim Walz is a National Guardsman, a teacher, comes from rural America, knows how to plow his driveway and fix a lawnmower, and his superpower is just normalness,” Phillips told The Epoch Times.

“He served in essentially a red district in Congress, moved a little left, of course, as governor of Minnesota, but I think in his heart, a man of common sense and decency and will be quite refreshing, should he become vice president.”

Phillips also said the Midwest is often underrepresented in American politics.

“I’m really pleased, frankly, to see both tickets have vice presidential candidates that are not from New York or California,” he said, referring to Walz and JD Vance.

The group suggested the Democratic Party needed a vice presidential candidate who would “represent and connect with rural communities that have felt left behind in recent elections.”

In office, Walz spearheaded a plan to provide universal free school meals for students, pushed to get Minnesota on 100 percent “clean electricity” by 2040, and expanded paid leave for workers.

The governor has recently signed a hands-free driving bill into law, prohibiting the use of cellphones while driving. Vice Presidential nominee Tim Waltz was praised by former President Barack Obama during the second day of the convention. Obama expressed his admiration for Waltz, highlighting his background of being born in a small town, serving his country, teaching kids, coaching football, and taking care of his neighbors. Obama also humorously commented on Waltz’s flannel shirts, eliciting a nod from Waltz’s wife, Gwen. It was mentioned that the flannel shirts were not chosen by a political consultant but rather came from Waltz’s own closet and have seen some wear and tear. Jacob Burg contributed to this report.

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