NBC News political reporter Steve Kornacki said Tuesday that Gov. Tim Walz (D-Minn.), Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate, is not helping the Democratic candidate’s support in blue-collar areas or smaller communities in key Rust Belt states based on his performance in his 2022 reelection bid in Minnesota.
Kornacki Appeared upon Meet the Press Now On Tuesday, he detailed the outlines of the 2022 Minnesota gubernatorial race between Walz and Republican Scott Jensen, and how it could offer insight into whether Walz can make inroads with blue-collar and rural voters that Democrats have “left behind.”
“When you say you’re going to boost Democrats in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania, it becomes, ‘Can we do something in these states where Democrats have lost their base?’ When you look at what Walz did in Minnesota, I don’t see that added value,” he said.
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In typical Democratic fashion, Walz performed well in urban areas but underperformed in blue-collar areas, small towns and rural areas. Kornacki noted that the densely populated Twin Cities region helped Walz win, but his poor showing in Republican-leaning “Greater Minnesota” was on par with President Joe Biden’s performance against former President Donald Trump in 2020, and both were big drops compared to President Barack Obama’s more competitive showing in 2012.
For example, in Stearns County, northwest of the Twin Cities, Jensen beat Walz by 22.9 points, 59.8% to 36.9%. Trump outran Biden in the county by 22.5 points in 2020, winning 60.1% to 37.6%, respectively. Trump had an even bigger win in 2016, beating Clinton by 27.7 points.
By comparison, 12 years ago Obama was far more competitive in these areas than Clinton, Biden and Walz, losing to then-Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney by 12 points, as Kornacki’s board shows.
Kornacki was scathing about Walz’s approval ratings in small-town Minnesota.
“Democrats lost ground here, and Walz made no gains in 2022.”
“The idea that he’s going to be automatically favored in these small-town areas just doesn’t seem to be what he’s actually done on the ballot.” pic.twitter.com/11m74oKUjH
— Philip Letsou (@philipletsou) August 6, 2024
“Before Trump, Democrats weren’t necessarily winning, but they were pretty competitive. It was the same across Minnesota, it was the same in small towns in Wisconsin, it was the same in small towns in Michigan, it was the same in small towns in Pennsylvania,” Kornacki said.
“That’s where the Democratic base has crumbled since Donald Trump came on the scene,” he added. “Obviously, Tim Walz won in 2022, but he didn’t show any new strength in parts of Minnesota where Democrats really fell behind during the Trump era.”
Breitbart News points out that Walz is clearly a radical left progressive, having signed bills to put feminine hygiene products in men’s restrooms, to allow undocumented immigrants to get driver’s licenses, and to order the state of Minnesota to become a “trans refugee” state, just to name a few of his policy positions.
Kornacki’s far-left views on many issues could cost the Harris-Waltz campaign important swing and moderate support, especially in the areas Kornacki mentioned, such as Spears County and the blue-collar Rust Belt communities.
