When Tim Walz and J.D. Vance face off as vice presidential candidates on Tuesday, it will be the biggest debate for both newly famous politicians.
Mr. Walz, the Democratic governor of Minnesota, and Mr. Vance, the Republican senator from Ohio, have spent the past few months honing their public speaking skills and sharp barbs against each other in television appearances and at events across the country.
Both men’s experience in campaign debates does not reach the level or notoriety that comes with presidential elections, but they have faced off against their opponents in public debates in past elections.
And given the closeness of the presidential race and the disastrous outcome of the first presidential debate between Joe Biden and Donald Trump, more people will likely be paying attention to the vice presidential debate than in past cycles. Probably. Vice presidential debates typically don’t have much impact, but they can be important in close races, raising the profile of lesser-known politicians who will likely remain on the national stage for years to come. Become.
Waltz’s debate experience
To practice before Tuesday’s vice presidential debate, Walz replaced Vance with Pete Buttigieg, the transportation secretary and frequent TV news interviewee. Mr. Buttigieg and Mr. Vance are both Ivy Leaguers from the Midwest and are about the same age.
Walz, 60, first ran for Congress in Minnesota’s Red Army district in 2006 and held the seat until he became governor in 2019. He first ran for governor in 2018 and then for re-election in 2022.
USA Today watched 10 hours of footage of Walz’s debates over the years and summed it up: “Waltz’s optimism and passion remain intact in his nearly two decades in politics.” According to the paper, during the first debate in the 2006 campaign to oust the Republican incumbent, he asked his opponent, Gil Gutknecht, questions about the climate issue, and then said, The newspaper said that he had a bad temper. Please answer about that. ”
Over the course of these frequent elections, he has debated his primary and general election opponents. On various occasions, his detractors have called his answers in debates and press appearances “word salad.” Kamala Harris and Donald Trump have also received considerable criticism over their word salad.
In his most recent election, he debated Republican Scott Jensen in 2022, which was his only general election debate that year.
In the debate, recently compiled by the Washington Examiner, Jensen attacked Walz over the state’s coronavirus response, police, taxes and energy issues. At one point, after Walz defended electric vehicle incentives, Jensen said Walz’s answer was “just a salad of words with no substance.”
Walz tried to attack Jensen on abortion, but Jensen deflected by saying there was no abortion question on the Minnesota ballot.
In August of this year, after the vice presidential debate was announced, Jensen posted a photo of himself and an empty podium. This was an image from a local public television debate that Walz had not agreed to attend. “Be careful, Tim Walz knows a thing or two about not coming to debates,” Jensen wrote.
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Vance’s debate experience
Vance, 40, is much newer to public office and the accompanying debate stage than Walz. His first election was for the Ohio State Senate in 2022. His campaign had received national attention because of his fame as an author and the large financial investment of right-wing tech investor Peter Thiel.
Minnesota Congressman Tom Emmer filled in for Walz in preparation for Vance’s debate.
In 2022, Vance will face Democrat Tim Ryan. They debated twice and the line of attack became more nationalized and centered around the party leadership. Politico called the second matchup “a little shockingly ugly to see Republican J.D. Vance and Democratic Rep. Tim Ryan shake hands at the end.” Ryan claimed that Vance was getting too close to Trump and said that Vance “kissed my ass,” the same year Trump claimed that Vance was “kissing my ass, he This is a reference to the statement that he claimed, “I would very much like to have my support.” Vance tried to connect Ryan with Nancy Pelosi.
Vance defended Trump in the 2022 debate and is likely to do the same in Tuesday’s debate. Vance said Trump “made a joke” in reference to the butt-kissing comment.
“I know the president well, and he was joking about the New York Times article. That’s all he was doing. I wasn’t offended by that. I talked to the president before. Everyone there took it as a joke.”
Ryan held Vance accountable for the lies and obfuscation, while also telling The Hill that Waltz should be himself. Danny O’Connor, who filled in for Vance in Ryan’s debate preparation, told Politico that Vance will likely continue his message, harshly criticizing the Trump campaign’s line on big issues, even if it’s not true. However, he also said that he has an awkward personality. Laughter, as seen in a viral clip of his campaign appearance.
“If someone says, “Senator Vance, you’ve supported a national ban on abortion in the past,” he laughs and says no, and says why not? ” O’Connor told the publication. “Usually he laughs when something is completely true and needs to be countered.”
