选择沃尔兹，哈里斯希望让民主党的“蜜月期”持续下去
【中美创新时报2024 年 8 月 7 日编译讯】（记者温友平编译）副总统卡马拉·哈里斯周二选择明尼苏达州州长蒂姆·沃尔兹作为她的竞选搭档，试图保持最近几周民主党人充满活力的团结，这位经验丰富的政治家拥有进步的记录，在党内各派系中都广受欢迎。《波士顿环球报》记者Jim Puzzanghera 和 Sam Brodey 对此作了下述报道。
在过去一个月的历史性混乱之后，60 岁的沃尔兹的选择终于完成了总统竞选，并强调了中西部战场州将在预计又一场白宫激烈竞争中发挥的重要性。
共和党候选人唐纳德·特朗普上个月任命俄亥俄州参议员JD万斯（JD Vance）作为他的竞选搭档，部分原因是他来自中西部。哈里斯对沃尔兹也做了同样的事情，沃尔兹曾是国民警卫队军官、高中社会学老师和足球教练，在内布拉斯加州农村长大，当时两党都希望吸引该地区的白人工人阶级选民。
“明尼苏达的力量来自我们的价值观——我们致力于共同努力，放下分歧，始终愿意伸出援助之手，”沃尔兹周二晚上在费城一个挤满人的体育场与哈里斯一起参加了一场喧闹的集会。“这些价值观是我在家庭农场学到的，并试图灌输给我的学生。我把它带到了国会和州首府，现在，哈里斯副总统和我正在竞选，将这些价值观带到白宫。”
哈里斯介绍他是她的搭档，以帮助在竞选中建立“更光明的未来”，她在竞选中宣称“我们是弱者……但我们有动力。”
“沃尔兹教练和我可能来自我们伟大国家的不同角落，但我们的价值观是相同的，”来自北加州的哈里斯说。 “我们都相信要提升人们，而不是打击他们。”
在任命这位之前名不见经传、被认为是黑马竞争者的州长时，哈里斯忽略了两位更为温和、知名度更高的民主党人：宾夕法尼亚州州长乔什·夏皮罗和亚利桑那州参议员马克·凯利。仓促的选拔过程需要由一支民主党团队进行审查，其中包括前波士顿市长马丁·J·沃尔什，他曾担任拜登总统的劳工部长，直到去年，并与哈里斯建立了密切的关系。
夏皮罗和凯利来自拜登在 2020 年险胜的州，哈里斯可能需要再次赢得这些州。但他们的政策立场都引起了关键民主党选民的担忧：凯利因之前反对一项重要的工会法案而引起了有组织的劳工的担忧，而夏皮罗因强烈支持以色列和批评学生抗议者而引起了加沙战争的反对者的担忧。
“她希望选一个不会被任何人大惊小怪的人，这样哈里斯的蜜月期就可以顺利进行，而她对沃尔兹就是这么做的，”民主党民意调查专家布拉德·班农说。“过去几天，我和很多民主党人谈过沃尔兹，我交谈过的人中没有一个人说他的坏话。”
在选举过程中，中西部温和派以及著名的左翼人士都支持沃尔兹。这位连任两届的州长有着进步的成就和亲切的吸引力，民主党希望这能引起威斯康星州和密歇根州等关键州的摇摆选民的共鸣，同时激励自拜登于 7 月 21 日退出竞选以来重新焕发活力的党内基础。
沃尔兹的标志性成就之一是在 2023 年签署立法，为所有学生提供免费早餐和午餐，无论家庭收入如何。
“他一直愿意接受艰难的斗争，总是倾向于‘这如何让工薪家庭的生活变得更好？’”马萨诸塞州参议员伊丽莎白·沃伦说，并列举了学校午餐法等其他举措。“沃尔兹将在战场州表现出色，因为他拥有正确的价值观，而且精力充沛、直言不讳。”
这一选择受到了各政治派别民主党人的欢迎。
纽约州众议员亚历山大·奥卡西奥-科尔特斯是一位杰出的进步人士，她在 X 上写道“民主党人令人不安的阵营”，以回应一篇将她对沃尔兹的赞扬与西弗吉尼亚州温和派参议员乔·曼钦的类似热情洋溢的言论相结合的帖子。
沃尔兹将很快得到全国性的介绍，他周二晚上与哈里斯的首次亮相将拉开为期多天的关键摇摆州之旅的序幕。
拜登退出竞选后，沃尔兹的声望迅速上升。原因之一是他擅长传达令人难忘且直言不讳的信息，尤其是将特朗普和万斯称为“怪人”，这很快被许多其他民主党人效仿。
共和党人周二坚称，他们也对这一选择感到兴奋——这是一个攻击和削弱哈里斯势头的机会。他们没有浪费时间，包括关注他在 2020 年明尼阿波利斯因乔治·弗洛伊德被谋杀而引发骚乱期间担任州长的表现。特朗普竞选团队迅速发布了一段视频，称哈里斯和沃尔兹“失败、软弱、危险的自由主义者”。
万斯本周将亲自出席哈里斯-沃尔兹的巡回活动，他在周二首次发表了一些批评。
“蒂姆·沃尔兹的记录是一个笑话。他是整个美国政府各级最极左的激进分子之一，”万斯在费城的一次活动中说。“但我认为蒂姆·沃尔兹的选择表明卡玛拉·哈里斯已经向党内极左势力屈服，而她一贯如此。”
万斯说，他打电话给沃尔兹表示祝贺，早些时候告诉记者他留下了语音留言，并渴望与他辩论。副总统候选人之间通常会有一场辩论，但特朗普竞选团队表示，在哈里斯做出选择之前，不会同意安排辩论。
在学生的鼓励下，沃尔兹在众议院任职六届，从 2007 年到 2019 年，代表明尼苏达州农村一个竞争激烈的选区，特朗普在 2016 年赢得了该选区。芝加哥大学政治研究所所长海蒂·海特坎普说，沃尔兹的农村背景——他也是一名猎人和渔夫——将平衡哈里斯领导的竞选团队，并帮助民主党在威斯康星州、密歇根州和宾夕法尼亚州西部等战场上获胜。
“你可能很长时间都无法赢回美国农村，但你不能在失去得这么惨的情况下还指望赢得这些州，”前北达科他州民主党参议员海特坎普说。“你必须出现。你必须带着这样的叙述出现，让人们说，‘我了解那家伙……他了解我的世界。他知道他了解我的挑战。’我认为这就是蒂姆·沃尔兹为竞选带来的。”
自 2018 年当选明尼苏达州州长以来，沃尔兹一直在推行雄心勃勃的进步议程，但民主党人认为这一议程引起了普通选民的共鸣。在民主党于 2023 年控制明尼苏达州立法机构后，他颁布了一项立法，保证带薪医疗和家庭假，使大麻合法化，并实施了新的枪支管制措施。
在这些胜利之后，沃尔兹开始吹嘘自己的记录，着眼于全国舞台。在 2023 年的州情咨文演讲中，他批评共和党州长陷入了文化战争问题。
“他们在学校里禁止书籍；我们正在从我们的学校里消除饥饿，”沃尔兹说。在被选为 2024 年州长竞选民主党官方竞选部门负责人后，他的知名度有所提升。马萨诸塞州州长莫拉·希利 (Maura Healey) 表示，她是沃尔兹的“骄傲同事”，并称他“是一个正直、富有同情心的人”。
“这个国家的人民不想回到唐纳德·特朗普的愤怒和分裂时代，”希利在一份声明中说。“他们希望带着乐观和希望一起前进——这就是卡马拉·哈里斯和蒂姆·沃尔兹所代表的价值观。”
周二，万斯称沃尔兹为“旧金山式自由主义者”，试图用共和党人对哈里斯的同样看法来描绘他。班农说，沃尔兹的背景和风格会让这变得困难。
“他是进步主义者，但他没有进步主义者的风度。他非常和蔼可亲，说话轻声细语，个性很重要，”班农说。“我认为他们很难描绘他……作为一名豪华轿车自由主义者。”
题图：副总统卡玛拉·哈里斯周二晚上在费城的竞选活动中介绍明尼苏达州州长蒂姆·沃尔兹为她的竞选搭档。
附原英文报道：
In choosing Walz, Harris looks to keep the Democratic ‘honeymoon’ going
By Jim Puzzanghera and Sam Brodey Globe Staff,Updated August 6, 2024
WASHINGTON — In picking Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as her running mate Tuesday, Vice President Kamala Harris sought to maintain the unity that has energized Democrats in recent weeks with a seasoned politician boasting a progressive record who is well-liked across the party’s factions.
The choice of Walz, 60, finally completes the presidential field after a historic spasm of chaos over the past month and emphasizes the importance Midwest battleground states will play in what is expected to be another close race for the White House.
Republican nominee Donald Trump tapped Ohio Senator JD Vance as his running mate last month in part because of his Midwestern roots. Harris did the same with Walz, a former National Guard officer, high school social studies teacher, and football coach who grew up in rural Nebraska, as both parties looked to appeal to the region’s white working-class voters.
“Minnesota’s strength comes from our values — our commitment to working together, to seeing past our differences, to always being willing to lend a helping hand,” Walz said at a raucous rally with Harris Tuesday night in a packed arena in Philadelphia. “Those are the same values I learned on the family farm and tried to instill in my students. I took it to Congress and to the state capital, and now, Vice President Harris and I are running to take those very values to the White House.”
Harris introduced him as her partner to help build a “brighter future” in a race in which she declared “we are the underdogs . . . but we have the momentum.”
“Coach Walz and I may hail from different corners of our great country, but our values are the same,” said Harris, who is from Northern California. “And we both believe in lifting people up, not knocking them down.”
In tapping the previously little-known governor, who was considered a dark horse contender, Harris passed over two more moderate, higher-profile Democrats: Pennsylvania Governor Josh Shapiro and Senator Mark Kelly of Arizona. The rushed selection process involved vetting by a team of Democrats that included former Boston mayor Martin J. Walsh, who served as President Biden’s labor secretary until last year and developed a close relationship with Harris.
Shapiro and Kelly come from states that Biden narrowly won in 2020 and that Harris will likely need to win again. But each had policy positions that caused concerns with key Democratic constituencies: Kelly with organized labor over his previous opposition to a major union bill, and Shapiro with opponents of the Gaza war because of his strong support for Israel and criticism of student protesters.
“She wanted someone that no one was going to kick up a fuss about so the Harris honeymoon can go on unabated, and she did that with Walz,” said Democratic pollster Brad Bannon. “I’ve talked to a lot of Democrats about Walz in the last couple days and no one I’ve talked to has a bad word to say about the man.”
During the selection process, Midwestern moderates as well as prominent left-wing voices advocated for Walz. The two-term governor has a resume of progressive accomplishments and a folksy appeal that Democrats hope will resonate with swing voters in key states such as Wisconsin and Michigan while motivating a party base that’s been rejuvenated since Biden dropped out of the race on July 21.
Among Walz’s signature accomplishments was signing legislation in 2023 providing free breakfast and lunch for all students regardless of family income.
“He’s been willing to take on tough fights, always with a tilt toward, ‘How does this make life better for working families?’ ” said Massachusetts Senator Elizabeth Warren, citing the school lunch law among his other initiatives. “Walz will be great in battleground states, because he’s got the right values and he’s energetic and plain-spoken.”
The choice was hailed from Democrats across the political spectrum.
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez of New York, a leading progressive, wrote “Dems in disconcerting levels of array” on X in response to a post that paired her praise for Walz with a similar effusive statement from moderate Senator Joe Manchin of West Virginia.
Walz will quickly get a national introduction, his debut with Harris Tuesday night kicking off a multiday tour of key swing states.
After Biden’s withdrawal from the race, Walz’s stock rose quickly. One reason was his knack for memorable and plain-spoken messaging, notably branding Trump and Vance as “weird,” which quickly became adopted by many other Democrats.
Republicans insisted Tuesday that they were also thrilled with the choice — as an opportunity to attack and blunt Harris’s momentum. They wasted no time, including focusing on his performance as governor during the riots in Minneapolis over George Floyd’s murder in 2020. The Trump campaign quickly released a video labeling Harris and Walz as “failed, weak, and dangerously liberal.”
Vance, who is following the Harris-Walz tour this week with his own appearances, debuted some of those critiques on Tuesday.
“Tim Walz’s record is a joke. He’s been one of the most far-left radicals in the entire United States government at any level,” Vance said at a Philadelphia event. “But I think that what Tim Walz’s selection says is that Kamala Harris has bent the knee to the far left of her party, which is what she always does.”
Vance said he called Walz to congratulate him, telling reporters earlier he left a voicemail, and is eager to debate him. There is usually one debate between vice presidential nominees, but the Trump campaign has said it would not agree to schedule one until Harris made her pick.
Encouraged by his students to run for office, Walz served six terms in the House, from 2007 to 2019, representing a hotly competitive district in rural Minnesota that Trump carried in 2016. His rural background — Walz is also a hunter and fisherman — will balance a ticket headed by Harris and help Democrats in battlegrounds such as Wisconsin, Michigan, and western Pennsylvania, said Heidi Heitkamp, director of the University of Chicago’s Institute of Politics.
“You probably won’t win rural America back for a long time, but you can’t lose it as badly as you’re losing it and expect to win these states,” said Heitkamp, a former Democratic senator from North Dakota. “You have to show up. And you have to show up with a narrative that people say, ‘I know that guy. . . . He knows my world. He knows he knows my challenges.’ And I think that’s what Tim Walz brings to the ticket.”
Since being elected as Minnesota governor in 2018, Walz has pursued an ambitious progressive agenda, but one that Democrats believe resonates with regular voters. After Democrats took control of the Minnesota Legislature in 2023, he enacted legislation that guaranteed paid medical and family leave, legalized cannabis, and implemented new gun control measures.
In the wake of those victories, Walz began touting his record with an eye toward the national stage. During his 2023 state of the state address, he criticized Republican governors for being bogged down in culture war issues.
“They’re banning books in their schools; we’re banishing hunger from ours,” Walz said. His profile increased after he was selected to lead Democrats’ official campaign arm for governor’s races in 2024. Massachusetts Governor Maura Healey said she was “a proud colleague” of Walz’s and called him “a person of deep integrity and empathy.”
“The people of this country do not want to go back to the anger and division of Donald Trump,” Healey said in a statement. “They want to move forward together with a sense of optimism and hope — and those are the values that Kamala Harris and Tim Walz represent.”
On Tuesday, Vance called Walz a “San Francisco-style liberal,” trying to paint him with the same brush Republicans have used for Harris. Bannon said Walz’s background and style will make that difficult.
“He is progressive, but he doesn’t have the demeanor of a progressive. He’s very affable, soft-spoken, and personality counts,” Bannon said. “I think they’re going to have a hard job painting him . . . as a limousine liberal.”
