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At a spirited rally in Philadelphia, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris introduced her running mate, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, reviewing his diverse resume and often calling him “Coach Walz” because of his stint as a successful high school football coach.
“In 91 days,” Harris said, “the nation will know Coach Walz by another name: vice president of the United States.”
The current vice president cited Walz’s time as a National Guardsman and teacher, and some of his progressive successes as governor of Minnesota, including sweeping voting rights measures and gun safety laws. The two emphasized their campaign theme of “freedom” and moving toward the “future,” rather than going backwards with Donald Trump.
For their part, Republicans spent the day deriding Walz as a “radical” liberal.
Walz then showed off his skill at attacking Trump, jokingly saying that violent crime was on the rise during the Trump administration, adding, “And that’s not even counting the crimes he’s committed!”
Notably, Harris and Walz were preceded on stage by Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro, who was passed over for vice president but who nevertheless gave a strong endorsement to the Democratic nomination.
Harris returned the praise in kind. “Together with Josh Shapiro,” she said, “we’re going to win Pennsylvania.”