Kamala Harris Leans Into ‘Coach Walz’s’ Midwestern Roots in First Rally

Throughout their first rally collectively after the announcement on Tuesday, Harris leaned into her lesser-known VP choose’s biography to introduce him to voters.

The Midwestern dad picture

Harris’ pathway to the presidency might be paved with the votes of Midwesterners in swing states like Wisconsin and Michigan, in addition to Rust Belt voters in Pennsylvania.

And the marketing campaign is already leaning into the imaginative and prescient of Walz as a mean Midwestern dad.

On the rally, Harris repeatedly referred to as her working mate “Coach Walz” — a nod to his days teaching highschool soccer and educating geography and social research. Throughout this time, he additionally served as the college advisor to the college’s Homosexual Straight Alliance scholar group.

Harris additionally famous Walz’s report as a veteran — he enlisted within the Military Nationwide Guard at age 17 and served for twenty-four years — and as a hunter. The marketing campaign even began promoting camo Harris-Walz hats on Tuesday, because the governor is often photographed in camouflage apparel.

Pictures and movies that make Walz seem like a mean Midwestern dad have additionally been going viral on social media.

Here is Walz educating his daughter about how one can arrange a stereo — and how one can admire vinyl and Bob Seger, the rockstar and fellow Midwesterner.

Here is Walz (carrying camo) on the Minnesota state truthful together with his daughter, suggesting they eat turkey after she mentions she’s a vegetarian.

“Turkey is meat,” she says.

“Not in Minnesota — turkey is particular,” Walz replies with out skipping a beat.

Here is Walz casually explaining how the “headlight harness” on his Ford SUV “burned out” and how one can repair it earlier than continuing to encourage people to get out and vote.

Former President Donald Trump and his allies have tried to color their opponents as out-of-touch, liberal elites, however Walz’s public picture, at the least at this level, stands in stark distinction to that.

In truth, when Sen. JD Vance, Trump’s working mate, tried to model Walz a “San Francisco-style liberal,” others have been fast to level out that Walz, who was born in Nebraska, hadn’t even visited San Francisco previous to final month — whereas Vance lived there for years.

Walz has additionally straight in contrast his Midwestern chops to Vance, an Ohioan with Kentucky roots. In his rally speech on Tuesday, Walz joked: “Like all common individuals in America’s heartland, JD Vance studied at Yale, had his profession funded by Silicon Valley billionaires, and wrote a bestseller trashing that group.”

His family-man picture additionally undermines Vance’s previous feedback about Democratic leaders being “childless cat women.”

His report on reproductive rights and assist throughout the occasion

Reproductive rights are extensively thought-about a profitable concern for Democrats. Whereas purple states handed abortion bans after Roe v. Wade was overturned, Walz signed a invoice that enshrined abortion rights into legislation in Minnesota.

Evaluate that with Vance, who previously has expressed positions on abortion that might put him staunchly to the appropriate of most Individuals.

Whereas Walz is a recognized progressive, he additionally appears to have widespread enchantment all through the Democratic Party.

Even Sen. Joe Manchin, who Republicans have praised for his average positions and who not too long ago switched to an impartial, praised Walz as Harris’ VP choose on Tuesday.

Simply vibes

If something, the viral clips and pictures of Walz being a Midwest dad may add extra gas to a marketing campaign that’s already working partly on vibes.

Walz appears to know that, given the jab he made Tuesday about being excited to debate Vance if solely he was “prepared to get off the couch and present up.”