How Tim Walz stacks up against Donald Trump

Let’s compare the most well-known candidate on the national political scene, Donald Trump, with the least well-known, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, partner of Kamala Harris.

Let’s start with religion, a big issue on the minds of many American voters. Even though Trump doesn’t go to church, pray, or obey the Ten Commandments, and even though he holds his Bible upside down and makes money by selling special Trump-approved Bibles, he likes to flaunt his Christian credentials to crowds of Christians white worshipers. evangelicals at rallies and conventions. Walz, a staunch Lutheran, takes a different approach. For example, he recently said of Minnesota: “We don’t have the Ten Commandments in our classrooms, but we do have free breakfast and lunch.” Wow, how radical! What would Jesus say?

Trump has never won a majority of the popular vote when running for public office. Not. He lost to Hillary Clinton by three million votes and lost to Joe Biden by six million votes. Tim Walz has run for Congress six times and won each time. He then ran for governor of Minnesota and won. The message is clear: Minnesotans love Tim Walz. Did you know that Trump only got 12% of the vote in his old hometown (borough of Manhattan) in the 2020 presidential election? Trump doesn’t get along well with those who know him best.

Here’s another topic worth addressing: money, Trump’s real Bible. As president, Trump’s main achievement has been massive tax cuts for the wealthy and corporations. Indeed, right after the tax cut bill for the rich passed, Trump returned to Mara Lago and told his wealthy friends, “You all got richer.” Walz, by contrast, worked to raise Minnesota’s minimum wage to $15/hour and tie future raises to inflation.

Walz rose to the rank of command sergeant major over 24 years in the US Army National Guard. Trump reportedly described people serving in the military as “kidnapped and defeated.” Can you say “bone spurs?”

In 2023, Trump became the first US president to be impeached in the nation’s 234-year history – and has since broken that record three more times. Walz was never charged. Put one up for the Trumpster.

Trump has filed for bankruptcy protection six times. Walz never did.

Let’s talk about education. It is perhaps true that Trump’s undergraduate degree from an Ivy League institution (the University of Pennsylvania) carries more weight than Walz’s from Chadron State College in Minnesota. And while Walz spent years teaching high school, Trump had loftier aspirations. He created his own hallowed institution of higher learning: Trump University. Never mind that Trump University was later deemed a “massive fraud” by the conservative National Review, or that he had to settle a $25 million lawsuit after becoming president. Details, details.

Trump appointed three Supreme Court justices who helped overturn Roe v. Wade. As governor of Minnesota, Walz supported the Reproductive Choices Act, which guarantees that every individual has the fundamental right to make autonomous decisions about their own reproductive health.

Trump has derided all efforts to address the effects of climate change. As governor, Walz passed a law mandating a carbon-free electricity grid by 2040.

And, well, let’s not overlook the hair. At a rally complaining about low water pressure, Trump said, “I have such a beautiful lush hair and I put things on… I like a lot of foam because… it seems a little thicker that way.” Walz, meanwhile, has joke: “I oversaw the dining room for 20 years. Don’t leave that job with a full head of hair. Trust me.”

It is enough. Trump and Walz are very different Americans with very different values. Some readers might argue that Trump isn’t running against Walz, that I’m comparing apples and oranges. Well, it’s true that Walz is as American as apple pie and that Trump’s face has an orange tinge. Let’s just say I’m comparing a very happy apple to a very sour lemon and leave it at that.

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