By Ray Cardello for August 9, 2024, Season 28 / Post 3

I always find it interesting to see who a Presidential candidate chooses to complete their ticket. The person chosen usually brings some electorate benefit, and there have been some fascinating choices for Vice President in my lifetime. The two mates do not always have to get along, as JFK chose LBJ in 1960. Kennedy was a young gun from New England who needed an established partner who could bring the Southern vote. Though they could not stand each other, Johnson made sense for the Democrat ticket. I think this is the only election where only the initials were needed by one party. Reagan chose Bush to give credibility and stability to the actor’s run for the White House. McCain’s selection of Sara Palin may have been the first DEI choice before anyone knew what the acronym meant.

It has been puzzling as I try to understand Kamala Harris’ pick for her running mate. Under the strange circumstances of her even being on the ballot after the coup to dump Joe Biden, you would think Harris would pick a superstar to overcome her lack of credentials and poor approval ratings. She could have gone with the popular Governor Shapiro from Pennsylvania, but he would have overshadowed her, and her ego would never allow that. She could have checked off a bunch of boxes and gone with the obvious WOKE/DEI pick of Pete Buttigieg. He would have been the first gay male and first male mother on a Presidential ballot, but Harris already checks enough boxes on her own, and neither running mate is qualified for the Oval Office. When she chose the obscure Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, it was unclear why she went in that direction, but her choice has become quite clear as the facts emerge.

Harris has no place on the ballot for President of the United States. She did not run for the office in 2024, and counting her dismal campaign in 2020, she is the only Presidential candidate who never got a single primary vote. She needed a strong pick for Vice President, and Walz did not appear to be the right choice. As Joe Biden’s Vice President, Kamala Harris was on one of the least transparent administrations in history with a penchant for telling lies and feeding the public misinformation. They epitomized gaslighting and made the term a household word. As we got to know Tim Walz this week, one fact on his resume explained how he is the perfect match for Kamala Harris. He lied about his military record. A cardinal sin for a candidate, but in Kamala Harris’ world, that faux pas makes him the perfect running mate.

Initially, the 24 years in the National Guard seemed like an honorable quality for the man. It is always a good thing to have a candidate who has served in the military on the ballot. But lying about that service can be a huge problem, and that is now Tim Walz and Kamala Harris’ problem. Walz claimed to have been in combat during his time with the Guard, and hundreds of members he served with will testify that his claim is a lie, and a big lie, at that. The truth is that Walz served for 24 years, but his rank and combat experience may be a problem.

Walz enlisted in the Army National Guard in Nebraska in 1981 and retired honorably in 2005 as the top enlisted soldier for the 1st Battalion, 125th Field Artillery Regiment, in the Minnesota National Guard, according to a copy of his records provided by the Minnesota Guard. He reached the rank of command sergeant major and served in that role. Still, he officially retired as a master sergeant for benefits purposes because he didn’t finish a required training course, according to the records and a statement from the Minnesota Guard. When his unit was called upon to go to Iraq, Walz chose retirement over active duty and watched as his 500 fellow Guardsmen went to the Middle East without their leader.

As Connecticut Senator Richard Blumenthal found out when he lied about serving in active duty in Vietnam, the American public, and especially veterans, frown on politicians embellishing their military records. Tim Walz committed that sin, which should have disqualified him but instead made him the perfect fit for Team Harris. Time will tell if the voters forgive him.