Harris chooses Walz: does this duo have what it takes?
US Vice President and Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris has chosen the Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, as her running mate. The duo kicked off their campaign with an appearance in Pennsylvania, one of the key swing states for the presidential election in November. Not all commentators see Walz as the best option.
Everyman appeal will win people over
The Times sees Walz as a good choice:
“Walz's background as a military veteran, high-school teacher and football coach is all part of his appeal. Since entering Minnesota politics he has shown a knack for winning in rural, conservative parts of the state. ... Video clips of the governor performing running repairs on his car while out on the campaign trail have gone viral. ... The campaign believes that Walz's everyman appeal will resonate beyond Minnesota, connecting with moderate Republicans and independent voters in small towns and rural areas across the country.”
Dawn of a new era for the Democrats
The Democrats are alive and kicking, comments the Frankfurter Rundschau with delight:
“The second tier is not orphaned. There are capable people in key swing states. This is good news for the US Democrats, but also for US democracy. ... It is also good news for US society that the party is taking a much-needed step towards a post Barack Obama-, Hillary Clinton- and now Joe Biden- era. ... Thanks to the public perception of relatively new names from Arizona, Kentucky, Pennsylvania and especially Minnesota, the field has widened well beyond the Washington bubble.”
Too progressive for US voters
Walz would be more popular in Denmark than in the US, Berlingske believes:
“Predictably, the Danish media will rejoice. The problem is that Walz has to be elected to office in the United States, not in Denmark. Many Americans will regard his progressive views with deep scepticism. ... Now the Democrats have elected two people of nearly the same age who, in key areas, fail to address some of the main concerns and hopes of Republican voters. Not least the huge issue of the southern border, where after four years of inaction the Democrats have a credibility problem with American voters.”
Swedes have every reason to be nervous
Swedes have little idea about how US elections actually work, Upsala Nya Tidning explains:
“The Ukraine war and Nato membership mean that Swedes have every reason to bite their nails on the first Tuesday in November. So it's strange that Swedish news readers are so poorly informed about what decides American presidential elections, namely domestic politics. ... The Trump side is perceived in Sweden as aggressive and sometimes bizarre. Quite rightly, it is also seen that way on the other side of the Atlantic. The difference is that in the US many people also perceive Harris's left-wing comrades as aggressive and bizarre, yet we hardly recognise this.”
A disturbing polarisation
Harris is steering the Democrats dangerously to the left, whereas Trump and Vance are the most conservative Republican duo in decades, Le Soir notes:
“This polarisation in US politics is rather worrying. In Washington, it regularly paralyses efforts to reach legislative compromises and pushes politicians to pursue their goals outside the blocked institutions, including through the - also politicised - courts, which only fuels the rejection of democratic institutions.”