Topline
The Trump campaign is citing Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s 2017 description of his state’s rural areas as “mostly rocks and cows” to attack the new Democratic vice presidential candidate, reviving an attack local Republicans have used against Walz for years—though Walz has argued he was taken out of context.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz takes questions on speculation that he is under consideration for Vice … [+]
Key Facts
Walz, describing conservative areas of his state during a roundtable while campaigning for governor in 2017, said Democrats “go into depression” when they see electoral maps shaded in red, but “it’s mostly rocks and cows that are in that red area.”
At the time, the comments prompted a wave of backlash from Walz’s GOP critics who have sought to link him to the stereotype that the Democratic Party is out-of-touch with the needs of Americans outside major cities.
The comment resurfaced Tuesday as Walz ascended to the 2024 Democratic ticket: The Republican party tweeted a video of Walz making the statement after Vice President Kamala Harris announced him as her running mate.
Walz has long noted the criticism lacks context, however: After the “rocks and cows” quip, Walz lamented that voters in rural areas often felt forgotten by politicians focused on more densely populated areas, explaining, “moving towards an urban population left a lot of people in areas where they were wondering where was the person speaking for them?”
Walz campaign manager Nick Coe responded to criticism of the statement in 2017 by noting to the Rochester, Minnesota-based Post-Bulletin that Walz “was elected and re-elected five times in a rural district” and highlighted the broader context of Walz’s statement, explaining that Walz was expressing the need for Democrats to “do a better job of speaking to rural voters if they want to have the same success as he has in responding to their concerns.”
The Harris campaign, when asked about the criticism, pointed to Walz’s extensive personal and professional connections to rural America—he was born in small-town Nebraska and spent his summers working on his family’s farm.
In Congress, he represented the deep-red rural 1st congressional district from 2007-2019, serving on the House agriculture committee throughout his entire tenure and helping draft multiple farm bills that set funding for agriculture programs.
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Contra
“When you look at Tim Walz, what you have is someone with a lived experience that is so comparable to so many of the people in rural America who are willing to maybe reconsider just blindly voting for the Republican Party candidate,” former North Dakota Sen. Heidi Heitkamp told The New York Times last month.
Chief Critic
“Walz doesn’t care about you unless you’re a deranged leftist or an illegal alien. Just like Kamala,” Trump’s campaign said in a tweet referencing the video Thursday.
Key Background
Harris announced Tuesday she’d picked Walz from a list of about a dozen rumored prospects, a choice Democrats hope will help build support in the key midwestern swing states of Michigan and Wisconsin. Walz is virtually unknown on the national stage, according to polls, including a NPR/PBS/Marist poll released this week that found 71% of voters were unsure who Walz is or never heard of him. He is relatively popular in Minnesota, where he won re-election in 2022 by a seven-point margin, and where 56% of voters approve of the job he is doing, according to a July SurveyUSA poll.
Tangent
Walz, 60, chair of the national Democratic Governors Association, had a moderate record during his time in Congress and has overseen the passage of a string of Democratic policy priorities as governor, including expanding voting rights for formerly incarcerated residents and enshrining abortion rights into state law. He oversaw the state during the Covid-19 pandemic and the police brutality protests in the wake of George Floyd’s death, prompting criticism form some Republicans over his handling of both issues.
Further Reading
Here’s What Polls Say About Tim Walz, Harris’ VP Pick (Forbes)
How Tim Walz—Kamala Harris’ Running Mate—Lost The NRA’s Support On Guns (Forbes)
Kamala Harris Picks Tim Walz As Running Mate: Here’s What To Know About Him (Forbes)
2022 midterms, 2024 presidential campaign, the January 6 House committee investigation, former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy’s historic ouster, the 2023 State of the Union Address, former President Donald Trump’s federal election interference and classified documents cases and his Manhattan hush money case. Dorn graduated in 2012 from the University of Dayton with a degree in journalism. Prior to joining Forbes, she covered New York City and state politics for the New York Post and City and State magazine. Follow her for updates and analysis on the 2024 presidential race, key Senate and House races and developments in Congress and at the White House.
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