Tim Walz

Those who’ve debated Walz before say he has a down-to-earth style that is relatable to voters — but it's an approach that can also cause problems for the Democratic vice presidential nominee.

Vice President Harris and running mate Tim Walz are on a two-day bus tour in Georgia. The state President Biden narrowly won in 2020 is again in play.

Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz popularized the term to brand his Republican opponents in the presidential race. To Minnesotans, though, it hits different.

People in politics have shared their experiences with infertility, including Michelle Obama and Mike Pence. But men haven't been as open about it on the campaign trail like Walz has.

Flanagan, a former state lawmaker and children’s advocate, would ascend to the office if Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz win in November.

Vice President Harris’ running mate has lived in China and traveled there many times. His relationship with the country has been under scrutiny, especially from Republicans.

Ever since Minnesota governor and Democratic vice-presidential nominee Tim Walz called Republicans "weird," we've seen other Democrats embrace this name-calling strategy and deploy it in interviews and in memes online. We've also seen Republicans lobbing the "weird" moniker right back at Democrats. To get into how "weird" this all is, Brittany chats with NPR culture reporter Andrew Limbong and NPR political correspondent Danielle Kurtzleben about this new political strategy and redefining "normalcy" in 2024.

By most measures, the new Democratic ticket has had an impressively smooth launch.

But there is one caveat to that — controversy over how vice presidential nominee Tim Walz described his military service.

A spokeswoman for the Harris-Walz campaign has said in a statement that the Democratic vice-presidential nominee "misspoke" when talking about his military service.

Walz, who served for 24 years in the National Guard, had made a comment that sounded like he had been to war.

Walz's Republican opponent, JD Vance, pounced on that comment to accuse Walz of what's called "stolen valor," a serious charge among veterans.

But there's also a history of playing politics with military service – one that's been used in past elections.

Is Tim Walz guilty of deliberately misrepresenting his military record or the victim of a familiar political smear tactic?

For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Email us at considerthis@npr.org.