Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz has been campaigning for Kamala Harris since she announced her candidacy in the wake of Joe Biden stepping aside last month. He is, after all, the one who coined the “weird” talking point for the Trump-Vance ticket back on July 23.
But when Walz joined Harris on stage in Philadelphia on Tuesday evening, it marked his first appearance as the vice presidential nominee. Harris wasted no time turning the mic over to her running mate and his maiden remarks focused on his Minnesota roots, his time in the military, and how he went from high school social studies teacher to Congressman.
Walz’s Debut
Megyn said that if Tuesday’s Harris-Walz kickoff event proved anything, it is that there is no denying the governor’s charisma and oratory skills. “I’m going to be honest… I watched him last night and I thought he was amazing. He is a spectacular speaker. He was charming. He had that rally in the palm of his hand,” she said. “He is way more effective than [Harris] is or Joe Biden is.”
That combination “scares” her, however, because his record as governor is anything but the moderate midwesterner he is being portrayed as. Some of that was apparent in his remarks – even if the delivery was compelling. A few of the highlights from Philly:
WALZ: Now, Donald Trump sees the world a little differently than us. First of all, he doesn’t know the first thing about service… He doesn’t have time for it because he’s too busy serving himself… He sows chaos and division and that’s to say nothing of his record as president… He 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’s not even counting the crimes he committed… In Minnesota, we respect our neighbors and their personal choices that they make… Even if we wouldn’t make the same choice for ourselves, there’s a golden rule: Mind your own damn business… The vice president and I talk about freedom. We mean the freedom to make your own healthcare decisions… and for our children to be free to go to school without worrying they’ll be shot at in their classrooms…
While Megyn admitted she can see why Harris chose Walz as her number two, she said all she could think about after watching his debut on Tuesday was the movie The Usual Suspects and how easy it is to fool people. “This guy scares,” she said. “He scares me because he actually could become the vice president and potentially the president.”
‘A Feeling of Fear’
As Megyn laid out earlier this week, Walz’s record as governor of the North Star State shows that he has governed much further to the left on issues ranging from illegal immigration to law enforcement than the media would have you believe.
One the areas he has been most progressive in is so-called ‘gender affirming care’ for minors. “He is the most radical they could find on gender transition,” Megyn said. “He is another Gavin Newsom. There is just almost no daylight between those two, if any at all.”
That is what has her concerned. “For the first time that I can remember, I had a feeling of fear rise up in my throat because I know what he has permitted in Minnesota when it comes to children,” Megyn explained. “England has rolled back these puberty blockers into cross-sex hormones, Scandinavia, all these experimental laboratories… and [Walz] is pedal to the metal, full steam ahead on all of it.”
Megyn said she is not worried about her own children getting caught up in the gender identity chaos, but she is worried about others. “This isn’t about a personal thing for me – it’s about everybody else’s kids. I care about children,” she concluded. “So, when I watched him dazzle last night… I recoiled.”
You can check out Megyn’s full analysis by tuning in to episode 857 on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you like to listen. And don’t forget that you can catch The Megyn Kelly Show live on SiriusXM’s Triumph (channel 111) weekdays from 12pm to 2pm ET.