VP Nominee Tim Walz's 5 Biggest Controversies You May Not Know About
5 Major Controversies Involving Kamala Harris' Running Mate Tim Walz
Recently Vice President Kamala Harris selected Governor Tim Walz as her running mate for the November polls. Former President Donald Trump described the pick as a shocking one and his supporters have also nicknamed Walz as "Tampon Tim." This followed a bill that Walz signed which stated all public school restrooms, regardless of gender, must have tampons. However, this is just one of many controversies that have an association with Walz. Here are five major scandals surrounding the Minnesota governor.
1. Minneapolis Riots
Republicans criticized Walz for his mishandling of the protests following George Floyd’s 2020 killing. They accused him of delaying the National Guard’s deployment. However, Walz defended himself as he said, “Decisions were made in a situation that is what it is. And I simply believe that we tried to do the best we can in each of those,” as reported by BBC. Michelle Phelps, an author said, "It's not surprising that Republicans are using this line of attack. It highlights that there are just not that many weaknesses of Walz to attack."
2. His Influence on the Police Shooting Case
Walz was also accused of offering insights into a police shooting case that many believed might have influenced the investigation. The case was against trooper Ryan Londregan, who was accused of shooting Black motorist Ricky Cobb II. It was later dismissed by the Hennepin County attorney Mary Moriarty. She criticized Walz and said, "Have you ever seen this governor intervene in any case involving a defendant in his entire tenure? Why is it appropriate for a governor who has never picked up the phone to call me, who is not a lawyer, who does not understand the nuances of this case, to talk about it publicly?" as reported by Fox 9.
3. The DUI Arrest
On September 23, 1995, Walz was arrested for driving 96 mph in a 55 mph zone while under the influence of alcohol. His license was suspended for 90 days. “A strong odor of alcoholic beverage was detected emitting from Mr. Walz[‘s] breath and person," a state trooper said. Walz’s attorney, Russell Harford said, “The state patrol officer turned around and, this is a little, a little bit bizarre, but Mr. Walz thought somebody was chasing him. The officer didn’t turn on his red lights and he — and somebody came up real fast behind him and he didn’t know what they were doing, so he sped up to try to get away, fearing that somebody was after him,” as reported by Alpha News.
4. Strict COVID-19 Rules
Walz put strict measures to curb the spread of the virus during the COVID-19 period. He also established a report line for violation of the mandate, but this was regarded as over-intrusive. Republican Paul Gazelka argued, "If Governor Walz thought people wanted a matrix of rules and guidelines to follow to reopen, he's severely mistaken. Thousands of businesses had no problems before, but Walz shut down every single one of them anyway." As reported by CBS, he added, "Let the businesses and employees who were keeping people safe go back to their jobs with simple, easy-to-follow guidelines." The strict rules resulted in debates about their impact on people’s privacy.
5. Pandemic Fraud Investigation
Along with criticizing Walz's pandemic restrictions, Republicans blamed him for poor oversight of programs that misused millions in federal funds meant for feeding children. Federal prosecutors charged 70 people in the fraud scandal. US attorney Joseph Thompson also commented on this as he said, "Defendants falsified documents, they lied, and they fraudulently claimed to be feeding millions of meals to children in Minnesota during COVID." As reported by ABC News, he added, "This conduct was not just criminal. It was depraved, and brazen."
