Since the 2024 presidential election, there’s been no shortage of criticism about the performance of the losing Harris-Walz ticket — but now, one half of that ticket is opening up about what might have gone wrong.
In a recent interview with POLITICO, Gov. Tim Walz offered a succinct assessment: “We shouldn’t have been playing this thing so safe.”
Though he acknowledged the challenges of a compressed, 107-day campaign — brought about by President Joe Biden’s dramatic exit from the race in July, right in the middle of the 2024 presidential race — Walz said “we probably should have just rolled the dice and done the town halls, where [voters] may say, ‘you’re full of sh*t, I don’t believe in you.'”
“I think there could have been more of that,” he added.
“In football parlance,” the governor said, “we were in a prevent defense to not lose when we never had anything to lose because I don’t think we were ever ahead.”
Tim Walz, X (Twitter)
A number of Harris-Walz campaign staffers seemed to agree with the governor’s critiques, with one telling POLITICO under condition of anonymity that Walz was “underutilized and that was the symptom of the larger campaign of decision paralysis and decision logjam at the top.”
The aide added that Walz got put “in a box,” and that “we didn’t use him the way we could’ve,” the news site notes.
However, Walz faults himself for campaign missteps as well, telling POLITICO he “owns” part of the defeat because, “when you’re on the ticket and you don’t win, that’s your responsibility.”
Walz, who was a social media darling during the veepstakes but seemed to take on a lower profile during the later days of the campaign, underperformed in his debate against then-Sen. J.D. Vance, Donald Trump’s running mate and now vice president.
He was also criticized for misspeaking about the details of his National Guard service record as well as his time as a student in China, among other gaffes.
The interview comes amid questions about Walz’s political future. He recently made clear that he will not seek the senate seat that will be left vacant by Sen. Tina Smith (D) at the end of her current term.
However, his other plans are still up in the air, as he is reportedly “considering” running for a third-term for governor but has yet to announce a decision.
You can read the full POLITICO interview by clicking right here.
