Moderates Should Learn To Stop Worrying And Be Walznuts

The best politicians don't gratuitously punch left or right; they build good will across all factions and, with it, room to maneuver.

(Photo by Alex Wong/Getty Images)

How did Tim Walz, who’s never had a big footprint in national politics, ascend from obscurity to the vice presidential nomination over the course of three weeks?

He obviously benefited from the once-in-a-lifetime circumstances that forced Democrats to assemble a new presidential ticket on the double. But within that crucible, there are two main ways to think about Walz’s recent success. 

A conventional explanation runs through Walz’s policy record in Minnesota. After a long tenure representing a red House district, Walz won gubernatorial re-election in 2022 with a narrow governing trifecta. That allowed him to sign a bunch of progressive policies into law, most of them popular, and he thus became an ideal “party unity” pick—a white, male, midwestern governor, with both a proven record winning in Republican territory and a proven record of legislative achievement. Progressives who didn’t know much about Walz saw merit in his record, Harris wanted to keep them bought into her candidacy, and so he rose to the top of the heap.

But I think my own conversion from qualified Josh Shapiro supporter into qualified Tim Walz supporter better distills his appeal. Until about 14 days ago, Walz wouldn’t have been on my list of top-ten possible running mates, let alone top-two or three. I knew all about his governing record and his service representing Minnesota’s first district in the House. But I didn’t really know until he started auditioning for the vice presidency that he has a compelling persona, too. He’s a counter-elite, and comfortable in his own skin. He isn’t boring and at least conveys the impression that he follows his own political instincts rather than the instincts of whoever’s collecting paychecks to offer him scripted, risk-averse advice. 

In campaigning for this role, he somehow managed to help the entire Democratic Party gain a better understanding of what unnerves them about their own opponents, and why large majorities find MAGA so off putting. Anyone else who so completely aced a job interview would expect an offer to follow, and while hiring a vice presidential nominee requires a deeper assessment of candidate skill and potential, it’s totally appropriate that the performance he delivered over the past few weeks helped secure him the nomination. 

Both of these frameworks help explain why he’s won glowing praise from both Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Joe Manchin, and just about everyone in between. But only the latter really explains how.