副总统卡玛拉·哈里斯正式任命明尼苏达州州长蒂姆·沃尔兹为她的副总统竞选伙伴，以助她挑战唐纳德·特朗普还有11月份的JD Vance。
哈里斯竞选团队周二上午发布了一份官方声明，称瓦尔兹和哈里斯将在全国“纵横交错”，展示谁在“推动国家前进”，谁在推动国家“后退”。哈里斯和沃尔兹本周将访问七个关键州，从周二晚上在费城的一场集会开始。万斯也将于本周访问战场州。
该活动强调了Walz作为中西部人和枪支所有者的背景，他“认为国会必须采取更多措施来解决我们社区的枪支暴力问题。”
沃尔兹发布于X周二，他“全押”在他作为哈里斯副总统人选的新角色上。
“加入@kamalaharris的这场运动是一生的荣幸，”Walz写道。“我全押了。”
60岁的Walz在veepstakes中为自己赢得了声誉，因为他在网上获得了很大的关注，他的民间举止和病毒性评论称特朗普和万斯“怪异”。
他曾在陆军国民警卫队服役，在2006年当选国会议员之前，他是一名高中社会研究教师和足球教练。
他在代表该州农村地区的美国众议院赢得了六个任期，该地区通常倾向于保守。
为什么选Walz?
据知情人士透露，哈里斯喜欢沃尔兹的管理经验，以及他“为中产阶级家庭取得的成就，为我们想要在全国范围内做的事情树立了榜样”。消息人士称，具体来说，Harris-Walz的竞选活动将突出他为扩大儿童税收抵免，垃圾费禁令，带薪休假政策，枪支安全立法和编纂罗诉韦德案保护而战。
作为州长，他实施了一系列进步的政策，包括带薪探亲假、普及学校早餐和午餐、娱乐性大麻使用合法化、堕胎权的州法典化以及普遍背景调查和红旗法等枪支控制措施。
消息人士告诉ABC新闻，哈里斯和她的竞选团队喜欢他的简历，并补充说，它“将在关键的中西部州吸引我们，我们必须获胜。”该消息人士补充道，作为一名退伍军人、足球教练、猎人和枪支所有者，沃尔兹与“美国农村有着深厚的联系”。
此外，作为众议院议员，瓦尔兹有在特朗普投票区获胜的记录。
消息人士称，哈里斯的团队喜欢他在攻击特朗普和万斯时提出的“奇怪”路线，并认为这是一条将坚持反对他们的对手的路线。
这位人士称，哈里斯做出这一选择的一个关键原因是“强烈的个人亲和力和对自己成为管理合伙人能力的信心”。
哈里斯在过去的这个周末采访了副总统候选人名单上的顶级竞争者，在她华盛顿特区的家中亲自会见了沃尔兹、州长乔希·夏皮罗(Josh Shapiro)和亚利桑那州参议员马克·凯利。
就在16天前，乔·拜登总统退出了竞选，哈里斯和她的审查小组由前司法部长埃里克·霍尔德领导，他们的工作时间被缩短了。审查小组最初广撒网，考虑了十几个人。名单很快变得更短，有九个人被正式要求提交审查材料。
这是一个广泛的过程，通常需要几个月的时间，但霍尔德和他的审查团队，由前白宫法律顾问达纳·雷穆斯，竞选主席珍·欧玛利·狄龙，竞选办公室主任希拉·尼克斯和哈里斯的妹夫托尼·韦斯特领导，在周五结束了他们的工作，交给哈里斯做最后决定。
哈里斯周六会见了她的审查团队，并获得了每个候选人的详细介绍。然后，她面试了最佳人选。
知情人士告诉ABC新闻，在哈里斯采访夏皮罗之后，夏皮罗的团队有一种感觉，那就是会议进行得并不尽如人意。消息人士称，周日晚些时候，在采访结束后，夏皮罗给哈里斯的团队打了一个电话，表示他对辞去州长一职持保留态度。
另一方面，据知情人士透露，周一晚上，沃尔兹暗示他将被选为哈里斯的竞选伙伴。
消息人士称，哈里斯于周一做出决定，并告诉了一小群员工。直到周二早上，她才给沃尔兹打了一个电话。
哈里斯告诉沃尔兹，他们是失败者
据知情人士透露，哈里斯周二早上在电话中告诉沃尔兹，他们在这场比赛中处于劣势，但她相信，他们在降低中产阶级成本和保护自由方面共同发出了胜利的信息。
据白宫消息，拜登周二上午分别与哈里斯和瓦尔兹进行了交谈。白宫高级副新闻秘书艾米莉·西蒙斯在一份声明中说，拜登在副总统宣布瓦尔兹将成为她的竞选伙伴之前与副总统进行了交谈，并“与州长瓦尔兹交谈，祝贺他的选择”。
该消息人士称，化学是哈里斯决定选择沃尔兹的一大因素。
消息人士称，哈里斯周二早上通知她的团队，她想把自己的决定告诉瓦尔兹和其他候选人。消息人士补充说，最终的决定和执行是在今天早上完成的。
竞选主席珍·欧玛利·狄龙和哈里斯竞选伙伴的幕僚长利兹·艾伦目前正在向沃尔兹和他的团队介绍周二晚上在费城举行的集会。
沃尔兹作为哈里斯的代理人
作为哈里斯过去几周的代理人，瓦尔兹称赞她为民主党人重新注入了活力，并为她反对特朗普攻击的记录辩护，称她是“极端自由主义者”。
“他将推出它，念错名字，你知道，试图证明这一点，”瓦尔兹谈到特朗普最近在美国有线电视新闻网(CNN)露面时攻击哈里斯。“事实是，你可以看到副总统哈里斯参与制定的政策，全国各地的民主党州长执行了这些政策，生活质量更高，经济更好，所有这些事情，教育程度更好。”
Harris officially names Tim Walz as vice presidential running mate
Vice President Kamala Harris has officially named Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her vice presidential running mate to help her challengeDonald Trumpand JD Vance in November.
The Harris campaign sent out an official announcement on Tuesday morning, saying that Walz and Harris will "crisscross" the country to present a split-screen on who is "running to move the country forward" and who is running to move the country "backward." Harris and Walz are set to visit seven battleground states this week -- beginning with a rally together on Tuesday evening in Philadelphia. Vance is set to visit the battleground states this week as well.
The campaign highlighted Walz's background as a Midwesterner and a gun owner who "believes that Congress must do more to tackle gun violence in our communities."
Walzposted on Xon Tuesday that he's "all in" on his new role as Harris' vice presidential pick.
"It is the honor of a lifetime to join @kamalaharris in this campaign," Walz wrote. "I'm all in."
Walz, 60, made a name for himself in the veepstakes as he gained major traction online with his folksy mannerisms and viral comments calling Trump and Vance "weird."
He served in the Army National Guard and was a high school social studies teacher and football coach before he was elected to Congress in 2006.
He won six terms in the U.S. House representing a rural area of the state that had typically leaned conservative.
Why pick Walz?
Harris likes Walz's executive experience and a his "strong record of accomplishment for middle class families that models what we want to do nationally," according to a source close to the selection process. Specifically, a Harris-Walz campaign will highlight his fight for expanded child tax credits, junk-fee ban, paid-leave policies, gun safety legislation and codifying Roe v. Wade protection, the source said.
As governor, he's implemented a bevy of progressive policies, including paid family leave, universal school breakfast and lunch, legalization of recreational marijuana use, state codification of abortion rights and gun control measures like universal background checks and red flag laws.
Harris and her campaign love his bio, the source told ABC News, adding that it "will appeal in key Midwest states we must win." As a veteran, football coach, hunter and gun owner, Walz has a "deep connection to rural American," the source added.
Also, Walz has a record of winning in a Trump-voting district as a House member.
Harris' team loves the "weird" line he came up with in his attacks against Trump and Vance -- and think that it's a line that will stick against their opponents, the source said.
And this person cites a "strong personal rapport and confidence in his ability to be a governing partner" as a key reason Harris made the selection.
Harris spent this past weekend interviewing the top contenders on her vice presidential shortlist, meeting in person at her Washington, D.C., home with Walz, Gov. Josh Shapiro and Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly.
It was just 16 days ago that President Joe Biden dropped out of the race, and Harris and her vetting team -- led by former Attorney General Eric Holder -- were operating in a truncated time frame. The vetting team initially cast a wide net, with more than a dozen people in consideration. That list quickly got shorter, with nine people being formally asked to submit vetting materials.
It's a process that is extensive and one that would typically take months – but Holder, along with his vetting team led by former White House counsel Dana Remus, campaign chair Jen O'Malley Dillon, campaign chief of staff Sheila Nix, and Harris's brother-in-law Tony West -- wrapped up their work on Friday, turning it over to Harris for a final decision.
Harris met with her vetting team on Saturday and was provided with extensive briefings on each candidate under consideration. She then interviewed the top choices.
Following Harris' interview with Shapiro, there was a sense among Shapiro's team that the meeting did not go as well as it could have, sources familiar with the matter tell ABC News. Later Sunday -- after the interview -- Shapiro placed a phone call to Harris' team indicating he had reservations about leaving his job as governor, sources said.
Walz, on the other hand, had an indication Monday evening that he would be chosen as Harris' running mate, sources familiar with the matter said.
Harris came to her decision on Monday and told a small group of staff, sources said. She did not place a phone call to Walz until Tuesday morning.
Harris told Walz that they are the underdogs
Harris told Walz in a phone call Tuesday morning that they are the underdogs in this race -- but that she's confident that together they have a winning message on reducing costs for the middle class and protecting freedom, according to a source close to the process.
Biden spoke separately to Harris and Walz Tuesday morning, according to the White House. Biden spoke with the vice president before she announced Walz would be her running mate and also "spoke with Gov. Walz to congratulate him on his selection," White House Senior Deputy Press Secretary Emilie Simons said in a statement.
The source said that chemistry was a big piece of Harris' decision to choose Walz.
Harris notified her team Tuesday morning that she wanted to inform Walz and the other candidates of her decision, the source said. The final decision and execution was done this morning, the source added.
Campaign chair Jen O'Malley Dillon and Liz Allen, the chief of staff to Harris' running mate, are currently briefing Walz and the teams ahead of their rally Tuesday night in Philadelphia.
Walz as a Harris surrogate
As a surrogate for Harris these past few weeks, Walz has praised her for reenergizing Democrats and defended her record against Trump's attacks claiming she is "ultra-liberal."
"He's going to roll it out, mispronounce names, you know, to try and make the case," Walz said of Trump attacking Harris during a recent appearance on CNN. "The fact of the matter is where you see the policies that Vice President Harris was a part of making, Democratic governors across the country executed those policies and quality of life is higher, the economies are better, all of those things, educational attainment is better."
