Donald Trump and JD Vance on the one hand, Kamala Harris and now Tim Walz on the other. What makes the possible vice president tick?
Kamala Harris (59) and Donald Trump (78) agree on one thing. When it came to the question of personnel regarding their “running mate,” the challengers in the race for the White House each opted for a candidate who had not yet been burned out on the international political stage. Add to that the respective obligatory career in the US military – but that’s about it for the similarities between the potential vice presidents JD Vance (39) and Tim Walz (60), whom Harris recently chose as her number two.
In fact, Timothy James “Tim” Walz can be seen as the antithesis, the exact opposite of Vance. The former is still very young at 39, but has recently at least adopted highly conservative views. And the latter may look like the little brother of former Vice President and Bush whisperer Dick Cheney (83) – but is apparently an old, white man with young views.
First of all, at 60, Walz is only one year older than Harris and a whopping 18 years younger than Donald Trump. However, the appearance of the governor of the US state of Minnesota may have aroused suspicions among some that the Democrats were looking for – and found – a conservative companion for Harris.
But appearances are deceptive, as numerous prominent supporters have wanted to correct – consciously or unconsciously – since his nomination. During his two terms in office, the former geography teacher and ex-football coach campaigned for abortion and LGBTQ rights as well as for stricter gun and climate laws in Minnesota. Three of Donald Trump’s most controversial issues, on which Walz seems to have extremely different views.
The first poison arrows fly
At a first joint campaign appearance with Harris in Philadelphia, Walz did not tire of listing further differences to the Trump/Vance team. The Republican presidential candidate literally grew up in the country club in Mar-a-Lago with a silver spoon in his mouth. And Vance also “had his career financed by billionaires”. According to the clear campaign strategy, Walz, as a man of the people, should ensure further increases in votes for the Democrats. He did not resort to any appeasing, unifying rhetoric either. It is probably too late for that anyway.
In any case, prominent Trump opponents are happy about Walz’s election and see it as a continuation of the spirit of optimism that began with the change from Joe Biden (81) to Kamala Harris in mid-July. Julianne Moore (63), Jamie Lee Curtis (65), Bette Midler (78) and Cynthia Nixon (58) have already reacted on social media and celebrated the decision.
This is also the case with Vivian Jenna Wilson, the trans daughter of multi-billionaire Elon Musk (53). This situation is likely to deepen the rift between father and daughter. After all, Musk has recently repeatedly emphasized that Trump can rely on his full support in the election campaign. This may be an extreme case. In many less prominent US families, however, the fronts will harden in a similar way and well beyond the upcoming US election.
