Capitol View for August 23

Good morning. See ya convention season! We can see November from our front porch.

Kamala Harris claimed the Democratic nomination for president Thursday night in a speech that aimed to project strength and empathy, map out a path forward and sharply contrast her candidacy with former President Donald Trump. The capstone address at a Democratic National Convention that went through a mid-summer makeover spanned about 37 minutes, included new peeks at her policy agenda and offered America a fresh look at a politician that some voters are still sizing up. Harris sought to carve out an identity apart from the president she’s served under, Joe Biden. She boiled her biography down to this: “My entire career, I’ve only had one client: the people,” she said, returning to the frame later by saying Trump has demonstrated he would “serve the only client he has ever had: himself.” She drew a distinction between Trump and Republican voters, inviting them to give her a shot. “Our nation with this election has a precious, fleeting opportunity to move past the bitterness, cynicism and divisive battles of the past — a chance to chart a new way forward. Not as members of any one party or faction, but as Americans,” she said, adding, “I promise to be a president for all Americans. You can always trust me to put country above party and self.”

Harris still has fences to mend in the party, particularly those not sold on the ticket because of the current administration’s posture toward the Israel-Hamas war in Gaza. Harris said she and Biden are working “around the clock” on a hostage return and ceasefire deal. Some uncommitted delegates at the convention left upset that no Palestinian-American speakers were given time on stage during the four days in Chicago. Clay Masters tracked the contingent during the convention because Minnesota had the largest presence in its delegation of any state. He wrote about it here.

Tim Walz's speech Wednesday was the shortest given by a vice presidential nominee in at least 40 years, according to records kept by C-SPAN. Walz’s speech only lasted about 15 minutes, which is long for him but short compared to previous vice presidential nominees. For comparison, Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. JD Vance’s speech at last month’s Republican National Convention lasted 35 and a half minutes. On Thursday, Harris spoke for 37 minutes, compared with 92 minutes for Trump last month in Milwaukee.

Another postscript to the Walz speech involves who came from his hometown to prop him up. Before he took the stage, a cadre of former Mankato West football players lined up in the convention arena to cheer on their former assistant coach. As the Star Tribune reports, the Harris-Walz campaign scrambled to get the crew to Chicago and Walz was as ecstatic to see his former players as they were to be around so many bold-typed names in American politics.

Gus Walz has captured the nation’s attention. An emotional Gus gave his dad a standing ovation during his DNC speech, shouting, “That’s my dad!” through tears. The 17-year-old’s passion and exuberance went viral and is quickly becoming a defining image of his dad’s address. Gus has a non-verbal learning disorder , ADHD and an anxiety disorder. His parents call it “his secret power”. And although some Trump supporters have lashed out at Gus’ emotional response to his dad’s speech on social media, a few Minnesota Republican lawmakers aren’t having it. Yesterday, Rep. Jim Nash, R-Waconia, called on members of his party to keep Gus out of it. “For those trying to find conspiracy or criticism about Gus Walz and who he is, please stop,” the state lawmaker wrote on X . “This is so much material to criticize Tim Walz on that you could have hours of this conversation. LEAVE HIS SON OUT OF THE DEBATE.”

Gus isn’t the only Walz family member getting additional notice. Hope Walz, his 23-year-old daughter, was in TV cutaways throughout the convention (almost always clutching that disposable camera). The Harris-Walz campaign has highlighted her for keeping dad humble and being a partner in widely shared social media videos. NPR did a story on how Hope Walz and her goofy interactions with her dad are helping him make generational inroads.

U.S. Rep. Dean Phillips wasn’t planning to attend the Democratic National Convention, thinking he’d be unwelcome after challenging President Joe Biden. But he went anyway. Phillips spoke yesterday to MPR’s Cathy Wurzer about how he was received. And he shared that Biden called both him and his adult daughters after Phillips ended his longshot primary challenge in March. Phillips is exiting his Minnesota political post after this term but didn’t rule out some kind of role down the road.

Dana, Clay and Brian joined Angela Davis for a special 9 a.m. show on the Democratic convention through its third day (there was a companion show in July during the Republican National Convention). Missed it? Find it here. Today is the annual MPR News/TPT Almanac simulcast from the State Fair at 11 a.m. It airs in the evening on TV. Catch some of the MPR News political team for that as well, and if you’re at the State Fair be sure to stop by to say hello.

Republican nominee Donald Trump is in Arizona today after visiting the southern border yesterday. Trump has been working to counterprogram during the Democratic convention and is still adjusting to Harris as his new opponent after feeling confident he could handily beat President Joe Biden prior to his departure. Trump is due to hold a rally in Glendale with a “special guest.” By many indications, that’s Robert F. Kennedy Jr. The independent presidential candidate is expected to end his campaign; he has been in talks with Trump over an endorsement. While his campaign has been slumping for months, the share of the polling support Kennedy was getting in some key states could be critical if those are close in November.

There’s some irony for Kennedy if he indeed drops out. He has been working hard — and suing in some cases — to get on November ballots. He already qualified for Minnesota’s ballot by submitting 2,000 valid signatures. But to get off the ballot, he’d have to go to court. He’d have to file an errors and omissions petition to remove his name from ballots which have yet to be finalized. As an aside, there are likely to be up to nine presidential tickets on Minnesota’s ballot. The Republican and Democratic parties must file paperwork for their nominees by Monday. The non-major party candidates had until Tuesday to get lined up. Four already did and three more are pending, according to the Secretary of State’s office.

Walz’s relationship with Minnesota’s tribal nations has been a subject of some of his national stage speeches. Leading up to Walz being picked for the Democratic VP slot, leadership from all 11 tribal nations in the state voiced their support of Walz in a letter to the Harris campaign. Melissa Olson spoke to some of the leaders who signed that letter. As governor, Walz prioritized government-to-government relationships with the tribes. In 2021, Walz signed legislation requiring the state to consult with tribal leaders on matters affecting tribal nations. Walz was the first governor of Minnesota to visit all 11 tribal nations.