\u201cHe mocks our laws, he sows chaos and division, that\u2019s to say nothing of his record as president,\u201d Walz said of Trump
\n PHILADELPHIA
\nDemocratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and her newly selected vice presidential running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, campaigned for the first time together on Tuesday in Philadelphia, kicking off a multi-day tour of battleground states aimed at introducing Walz to the national stage.
\nIn his remarks to a raucous crowd of more than 10,000 at Temple University, Walz described his upbringing in a small Nebraska town, his 24 years serving in the Army National Guard and his prior career as a high school social studies teacher and football coach.
\n\u201cIt was my students who encouraged me to run for office,\u201d he said. \u201cThey saw in me what I was hoping to instill in them: a commitment of common good, a belief that one person can make a difference.\u201d
\nHe also went after the Republican presidential nominee, Donald Trump, and his running mate, Senator JD Vance, an early demonstration of how Walz will approach the traditional \u201cattack dog\u201d role of the vice presidential candidate despite his affable, folksy style.
\n\u201cHe mocks our laws, he sows chaos and division, and that\u2019s to say nothing of his record as president,\u201d Walz said of Trump. \u201cHe froze in the face of the COVID crisis, he drove our economy into the ground, and make no mistake, violent crime was up under Donald Trump. That\u2019s not even counting the crimes he committed.\u201d
\nHarris\u2019 entry into the race after President Joe Biden abandoned his reelection bid just over two weeks ago has rapidly upended the election campaign, with polls showing she has erased the lead Trump had built.
\nWalz criticized Republicans for pursuing restrictions on women\u2019s reproductive rights, an issue that has plagued Republicans since the US Supreme Court in 2022 ended women\u2019s constitutional right to abortion.
\n\u201cEven if we wouldn\u2019t make the same choice for ourselves, there\u2019s a golden rule: mind your own damn business!\u201d he said, drawing a huge ovation.
\nHarris, speaking before Walz, listed his titles\u2013husband, father, teacher, coach, veteran, congressman, governor\u2013before predicting he would earn a new one in the Nov. 5 election: vice president of the United States.
\n\u201cHe\u2019s the kind of person who makes people feel like they belong and then inspires them to dream big,\u201d she said.
\nHarris, the US vice president, announced her choice of Walz earlier in the day, opting for a vice presidential running mate with executive experience, military service and a track record of winning over the rural, white voters who have gravitated to Trump over the years.
\nThe Harris campaign said it had raised more than $20 million after the announcement of Walz as the vice presidential pick.
\nPennsylvania, the site of their first rally, is seen as perhaps the most critical state in what is expected to be a close election between the Democrats and their Republican rivals.
\nTrump, Vance, call walz \u2018radical\u2019
\nWalz was elected to a Republican-leaning district in the U.S. House of Representatives in 2006 and served 12 years before being elected governor of Minnesota in 2018 and again in 2022.
\nHe has pushed a progressive agenda that includes free school meals, goals for tackling climate change, tax cuts for the middle class and expanded paid leave for workers.
\nTrump and Vance were quick to criticize the new competition as too liberal.
\n\u201cThis is the most Radical Left duo in American history,\u201d Trump wrote on his social media platform.
\nVance knocked Walz for his handling of protests after George Floyd, a Black man, was killed in Minneapolis by a white police officer in 2020, with the Republican saying Walz was not assertive enough in combating the rioters.
\n\u201cThe biggest problem with the Tim Walz pick\u2013it\u2019s not Tim Walz himself. It\u2019s what it says about Kamala Harris, that when given the opportunity she will bend the knee to the most radical elements of her party,\u201d Vance told reporters in Philadelphia earlier in the day.
\nAmericans typically focus on the person at the top of the ticket when choosing whom to vote for, but vice presidential candidates can help or hurt their running mates based on their backgrounds, home state popularity and ability to sway important constituencies or independent voters.
\n\u201cShe went with her gut on this one and chose the option that won\u2019t alienate young folks,\u201d said Republican strategist Rina Shah.
\nWalz beat out Pennsylvania\u2019s popular governor, Josh Shapiro, for the No. 2 role. Shapiro had faced sharp criticism from the left, especially progressive groups and pro-Palestinian activists, over his support for Israel and his handling of college protests sparked by the war in Gaza.
\nShapiro delivered a fiery speech at the Tuesday evening rally in his home state, attacking Republicans and promising to \u201cwork my tail off\u201d to get Harris elected. He also offered a strong endorsement of Walz, telling the crowd that he is an \u201coutstanding governor\u201d and a \u201cgreat patriot.\u201d
\nSome Trump advisers were glad Harris did not pick Shapiro because of concerns he could help deliver all-important Pennsylvania if he was on the ticket, one adviser said.
\nAfter their joint appearance in Philadelphia, Harris and Walz plan a multi-city tour of critical swing states including Wisconsin, Arizona and Nevada. Vance is doing a similar tour, with stops in Michigan and Wisconsin planned on Wednesday.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u201cHe mocks our laws, he sows chaos and division, that\u2019s to say nothing of his record as president,\u201d Walz said of Trump PHILADELPHIA Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and her newly selected vice presidential running mate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, campaigned for the first time together on Tuesday in Philadelphia, kicking off a multi-day tour […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":423566,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-423562","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-world"],"yoast_head":"\n