Katie Sullivan ’27
On Tuesday, March 25, the Policy and Politics in America Seminar hosted Minnesota Governor Tim Walz over Zoom in Rehm Library. He has served as a governor since 2019 and was the Democratic nominee for vice president in the 2024 presidential election. Before becoming Governor, he served as U.S. Representative of Minnesota’s first Congressional district.
The Policy & Politics in America Seminar is a part of the academic internship program offered through the J.D. Power Center taught by former U.S. representative for New York’s first Congressional District Tim Bishop ‘72 and political consultant Peter Flaherty ‘87. The class provides students the opportunity to study politics from lecturers on both sides of the aisle, offering diverse perspectives while working on an internship related to the course content. Past speakers in the seminar have included New York Times Journalist Maggie Haberman, former Governor of Florida Jeb Bush, and Connecticut Senator Chris Murphy.
Flaherty introduced Gov. Walz to a packed library and then gave him the floor to talk. Gov. Walz discussed his lack of political engagement up until 2004 and how that led him to run for the House of Representatives. In discussing his time as a Congressman, he touched on meeting Bishop and the difference between Congress then and now. Gov. Walz then wrapped up his brief introduction by talking about his transition from Congressman to Governor before switching to student questions. Questions focused on topics such as the loss of Democrats in the 2024 election, the vetting process for becoming the vice-presidential nominee, and recent events such as his opinion on the signal scandal.
Throughout the eight student questions, Gov. Walz spent time reflecting on his loss in the 2024 Presidential election, focusing on his faults throughout the campaign and fixing the messaging of the Democratic Party. When asked if he saw Democrats changing their focus after losing different minority group votes in the last election, Gov. Walz responded, “I feel like when you are on the ticket you own it.” Saying how his concern was not about picking voters off from Donald Trump but rather those who did not vote.“My fear was nearly 80 million people stayed home, and I think the Democrats need to ask the question: how god dang uninspiring do you have to be that people just didn’t vote.” His reasoning for this is the difference in messaging between the two parties. “I think if you ask somebody what defines the Republican Party and folks who voted for Trump, you may not like it or agree with it but there is really not a lot of debate around it… I think on the Democratic Party we have not been clear enough, especially with working people, that this was the party that looked after you.”
Although much of the conservation focused on the future of the Democratic Party and his time as Governor, there were some light-hearted moments. For instance, when Gov. Walz discussed meeting Katy Perry on the campaign, and when Flaherty asked Gov. Walz if he had ever watched the TV show “VEEP” with Julia Louis Dreyfus, which Gov. Walz quickly responded, “I met her and she told me not to watch it.” prompting a burst of laughter from the audience.
As the hour came to a close, Flaherty wrapped up by telling Gov. Walz, “You might not have won the Presidential election but you filled up this library with a bunch of people who love you at the College of the Holy Cross, you have great friends like Tim Bishop and you have a family that loves you to pieces so you are doing something right. ” Following, Bishop thanked Gov. Walz for taking the time to talk to students and their questions before closing out of the Zoom.
Featured Image Courtesy of The Press Democrat
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