Despite a staggering legacy of lies, exaggerations, and stolen valor, vice presidential nominee Tim Walz told ABC’s “The View” Monday he speaks “honestly.”
“I think being a teacher, being a coach, I just speak from my heart. I speak honestly. I speak in the moment,” Walz said as a sad excuse for his chronic habit of substantive deceit that rivals the worst in modern political history.
Walz has lied about his military service, invented stories about witnessing historic events, and even distorted the facts of his own criminal record. But his dishonesty is not the only danger he poses to the country. His tenure as Minnesota’s governor has been catastrophic, with disastrous economic policies, rampant fraud, and skyrocketing crime rates leaving the state in tatters.
If this is any indication of what would happen if given the keys to the White House, the consequences would be extraordinarily damaging to our nation. Walz should be disqualified from holding any office, let alone the vice presidency.
Let’s start with the economy. Under Walz, Minnesota’s economy has experienced its slowest growth in over two decades. Prior to Walz, Minnesota had two governors of eight-year terms: Tim Pawlenty (Republican) and Mark Dayton (Democrat). Pawlenty, who led Minnesota through the Great Recession, still averaged annual growth rates of 1.75 percent. Dayton, who governed afterward amidst relatively good economic times nationally, averaged growth rates of 2.14 percent.
Under Walz, however, Minnesota has suffered an anemic rate of growth of 1.41 percent. Defenders might point to
