While Democratic voters think they have someone in Tim Walz who can effectively make the case that Donald Trump, JD Vance and the rest of the GOP are weird, Democrats in Congress had another reason they were ecstatic about Kamala Harris selecting Walz as her vice presidential nominee: He’s a House guy — and they, personally, know and like him.
“He’s extremely popular with Democratic members,” Rep. Jamie Raskin, who briefly served in the House with Walz, told NOTUS. “He’s a super funny and smart guy, and he will be a natural.”
In many ways, Walz’s vice presidential credentials could have been written by ChatGPT. An Army National Guard veteran. A former geography teacher, football coach and Gay-Straight Alliance adviser. A governor of a midwestern state. A dad. A husband. And, most importantly to Democrats in the House, one of them.
Walz served 12 years as a member of Congress, rising all the way up to become the top Democrat on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee. While Walz’s résumé has given him a number of selling points — for instance, he was also the highest-ranking enlisted soldier to ever serve in Congress — it was his time in the House that seemed to be exciting many lawmakers.
On Tuesday, Rep. Dan Kildee — a longtime member of House leadership — said he has a “personal friendship” with Walz.
He told NOTUS that he pushed for Walz to be the top Democrat on the Veterans Affairs’ Committee back in 2017, and he recently reminded the Harris campaign of his enthusiasm for Walz.
“I’ve spoken to a lot of House Democrats, and there was universal enthusiasm for Tim,” Kildee said. “I think it’s because we know him, and there’s nothing quite like seeing how people behave when nobody else is watching, when the cameras are not on.”
Members of the Veterans Affairs’ Committee who served with Walz offered similar praise.
“Met Tim Walz on my first day in Congress, sat next to him on Veterans Affairs committee for the following six years,” former Rep. Beto O’Rourke wrote on X. “No one fought harder for veterans. And he did it by bringing Democrats and Republicans together to get the job done.”
“I couldn’t be more excited that he’s on the ticket, couldn’t be more energized to do everything I can to help Vice President Harris and Governor Walz win the most important election of our lives,” O’Rourke said.
Rep. Scott Peters, who also served with Walz on the Veterans’ Affairs Committee, called the former ranking member a “friend and one of the finest leaders I’ve come across in my time in Congress.”
“He has immense respect and support from all of us who served with him because of the type of leader he was and continues to be,” Peters said in a statement.
On top of having close relationships with Democrats in Congress, Walz seemed to win the vice presidential job because of his ability as a messenger. Walz is the architect of the Democrats’ most effective hit on Vance since his selection as Trump’s running mate last month — that he’s “weird.”
And Democratic lawmakers think she’s tapped a perfect foil: someone who is uniquely normal.
As Rep. Glenn Ivey put it to NOTUS, Gov. Walz is “out of central casting.” And that seemed to be the point.
The Minnesota governor can help balance the ticket and help Harris and Democrats message that it’s Republicans who are out of touch with normal Americans. Responding to resurfaced viral clips of Vance criticizing “childless cat ladies,” Walz popularized the attack line. And those attacks appear to be working.
Rumors are already swirling in Trumpworld about Vance’s fitness as the former president’s No. 2. The Vance pick seemed designed to fire up the MAGA base and secure Trump’s ideological legacy. Instead, his lackluster debut has left GOP lawmakers privately wondering if Trump made the right call.
Sensing blood in the water, the Democratic playbook to counterprogram Vance appears to have crystallized with Walz. For every awkward, cringe or outrageous Vance moment, Walz will pop up somewhere cuddling a baby animal at a state fair or screaming on a carnival ride with his daughter.
If Trump evokes “drunk uncle,” Democrats are hoping Walz exudes fun uncle.
“I can tell you one thing,” Rep. Jasmine Crockett texted NOTUS Tuesday morning, “she’s already showing better leadership than Trump with her VP pick.”
Rep. Ritchie Torres put his assessment of the Walz pick in even blunter terms.
“Her selection stands in sharp contrast to Donald Trump’s self-inflicted wound of JD Vance, who has had the most inauspicious beginning in the history of Vice Presidential candidates,” Torres said in a statement, adding that, “Somewhere Dan Quayle is smiling.”
The early and resounding support for Walz from Torres is noteworthy, given he’s one of the most pro-Israel Democrats in the House. The war in Gaza is a significant fault line in the Democratic Party. President Joe Biden’s pro-Israel stances animated anti-war protesters to vote “uncommitted” in major primaries. Those same opposition groups denounced Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro — who is Jewish — as too supportive of Israel.
But somehow, Walz seems to satisfy the full spectrum of congressional Democrats on the subject — at least for now.
Sen. Joe Manchin — arguably the most moderate lawmaker caucusing with Democrats — lauded Walz. Manchin said on X that Walz would bring “normality back to the most chaotic political environment that most of us have ever seen.”
Progressive member of the squad, Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, also celebrated Walz on Instagram. “I’m trying to think of the last time Joe Manchin and I were on the same side of an issue, respectfully,” she said.
Progressives championed Walz on Capitol Hill weeks before his ultimate selection. One of his most vocal advocates has been Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Pramila Jayapal. After the announcement, she highlighted Walz’s record and also played up his electability in swing states.
“Governor Walz brings to the Harris-Walz ticket a proven ability to repeatedly and consistently win in rural and swing districts, and to implement a strong, progressive agenda that provides opportunity and freedom for all,” Jayapal said in a statement.
It remains to be seen if Walz can actually win over Rust Belt voters in swing states like Michigan, Wisconsin and Pennsylvania during a presidential election. The progressives promoting him point to 2006 when he flipped a Republican House seat in rural Minnesota.
“Gov. Walz has a strong record of appealing to swing state moderates,” progressive Rep. Greg Casar texted NOTUS.
But politics in the Trump era looks a lot different from what it was in 2006. As Republicans breathlessly race to paint Walz as a radical co-conspirator of the extreme Biden-Harris record, Walz will have to walk a delicate line of appeasing the Democratic base while inviting moderates into the fold.
Still, he’ll have House Democrats as powerful allies in his corner — with one particular powerful ally proving to be just as powerful as ever.
Former Speaker Nancy Pelosi — still a leading power broker in Congress and the Democratic Party — reportedly put her finger on the scale for Walz, with sources close to Pelosi confirming that she’s usually partial to former members of the House.
By Tuesday morning, Pelosi was defending Walz from an onslaught of GOP attacks. And just like her colleagues, the former speaker appealed to the party’s hope that Walz could appeal to everyone.
“Tim Walz, I know very well. He served in the House,” Pelosi told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” “To characterize him as left is so unreal. It’s just not — he’s right down the middle. He’s a heartland of America Democrat.”
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Riley Rogerson is a reporter at NOTUS.