Democrats nervous about ‘bad debater’ Walz ahead of Vance clash

Minnesota governor understood to be worried about letting Kamala Harris down with a poor performance

Democrats are reportedly nervous about how Tim Walz, a self-professed “bad debater”, will fare in his only televised head-to-head with vice-presidential rival JD Vance on Tuesday night.
The Minnesota governor is understood to be worried about letting down Kamala Harris with a poor performance and making her regret selecting him as her running mate for the 2024 campaign.
While he has had a lengthy career in politics, the 60-year-old is far less accustomed to the national spotlight than Mr Vance, 40, who frequently appears on TV and honed his debating skills during his Ivy League education.
Mr Walz is said to have confessed to being a poor debater during the vetting process to be selected as the Democratic vice-presidential candidate. He also revealed that he had never used a teleprompter.
Ms Harris was said to have been impressed by the humility he displayed in his frank admissions about his inexperience on the national stage.
He was selected in part in the hope that his folksy, down-to-earth persona and connection to the Midwest would appeal to the American heartlands where the Democrats are desperately trying to reclaim ground.
However, Mr Walz’s aides and allies told CNN that he has been fretting about disappointing Ms Harris as he intensively prepares for the debate.
Insiders insist that there are genuine nerves among Democrats that go beyond mere strategic expectation management.
Campaign staffers said that Mr Walz has frequently returned to the point even as he regularly works late into the night and over multiple weekends to prepare.
Democrats who know the Minnesota governor well have publicly conceded the format does not suit his skill set.
“He’s just not a lawyer-debater type. It’s not like he was dreaming of debates when he was in first grade,” Amy Klobuchar, a Minnesota senator who has known Mr Walz for almost two decades, told CNN.
Aides say that Mr Walz is confident in the Harris campaign platform and strategy, but fears he will not effectively articulate their message on stage.
Vice-presidential debates rarely alter the trajectory of White House races, but with Ms Harris and Donald Trump unlikely to face each other again, Tuesday night comes with added scrutiny as probably the last major televised event before Nov 5.
To prepare, Mr Walz has enlisted the help of Pete Buttigieg, the US transportation secretary and a former Democratic presidential candidate.
Mr Buttigieg has been impersonating Mr Vance in mock debate sessions. The pair share some biographical details: both are Midwesterners of a similar age, veterans and educated at Ivy League institutions before enjoying a rapid rise into front-line politics.
Mr Vance, an Ohio senator, has been practicing with the aid of Tom Emmer, a Republican congressman who represents a district in Mr Walz’s home state of Minnesota and has reportedly been imitating the governor’s folksy demeanour in their mock sessions.
The Republican candidate is expected to hammer his opponent, who is also a veteran, over claims that he embellished his military record.
Mr Walz came under fire for claiming he carried weapons “in war”, despite never seeing active combat, and later said he had misspoken.
He was also accused by fellow former service members of shirking a deployment to Iraq, although others in his unit contended his decision to withdraw from the US national guard was made before the call to deploy came.
Meanwhile, Mr Walz will attempt to provoke Trump, who will be watching along on TV, by pointing out Mr Vance’s past criticism of the former president and claiming that it shows a divide on the GOP ticket.
The 90-minute debate will be hosted by CBS News in New York at 9pm Eastern Time (2am BST).
In a departure from the presidential debate between Trump and Ms Harris, the two candidates’ microphones will remain on for the duration, although the network said that it reserved the right to mute them.