From NRA ally to adversary: Gov. Tim Walz track record on guns highlights policy evolution
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As Gov. Tim Walz introduces himself to a national audience after being selected as the Democratic vice presidential candidate, one area illustrates his policy push to the left more than most: his track record on guns.
The former U.S. representative and two-term governor had long touted the title of top shot in Congress. But he’s distanced himself in recent years from the top marks bestowed on him by the National Rifle Association during his tenure in the U.S. House.
“When I first started in Congress, I had an A rating from the NRA. I have straight Fs now, I sleep just fine at night,” Walz said last year during his State of the State address.
The NRA once viewed Walz as a reliable ally and he could often be spotted in an NRA ballcap.
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But that suddenly stopped and Walz said his views on firearm restrictions changed as he heard from people affected by gun violence. In 2017, he described how a series of mass shootings reshaped his views on gun policy.
“Sandy Hook has come since then, I would say Las Vegas has come,” Walz told WCCO-TV. “I do agree with your constitutional right to keep and bear arms and I suppose folks will see things as political expediency but I think what is different about me is my ability to build coalitions that are counterintuitive. To get this right, we’re going to have to bridge the cultural gap.”
During the 2018 race for governor, Walz sent a campaign donation from the NRA to a fallen heroes fund. Former U.S. Rep. Collin Peterson, a fellow moderate Democrat, said Walz’s positions on guns became more progressive from there.
“I don’t think there’s any question, he’s moved to the left of where he was when he was in Congress, you know? And I think to some extent that’s because of who elected him,” Peterson said. “It doesn’t take a genius to figure out he was elected by the Twin Cities, by the, you know, the metropolitan area.”
Walz won the 2018 race and started calling on lawmakers to advance legislation that would add tougher background checks to buy a gun and set up ways to remove a firearm if someone poses a risk to themselves or others.
With a divided Legislature, gun policy stalled. But when Democrats secured full state government control last year, Walz had a new opportunity.
“The time for thoughts and prayers is long-gone,” Walz said during his 2023 State of the State speech. “What we need is action and we need it now.”
He called on lawmakers to pass gun control legislation.
“We all know damn well that weapons of war have no place in our schools, in our churches, in our banks or anywhere people want to live in peace,” he said in his address to the Legislature.
The governor signed two bills later that year that beefed up background checks and added a new process to request removal of firearms from those believed to pose a risk. This spring, Walz signed another proposal that enhanced penalties for providing guns to people who can’t legally have them.
Gun control advocates credit him with signing bills toughening Minnesota‘s gun laws — and also applauded the way first lady Gwen Walz has pushed for them. Gwen Walz was more forceful than her husband early in his first term in calling out Republican lawmakers who stood in the way.
She angered some lawmakers for declaring them on shaky electoral ground for their stance.
Walz said he wasn’t about to tell his wife to stay on the sidelines.
“She has made it clear she has had a voice and she should use it,” the governor said. “I’ve been married to her for 25 years, and that’s exactly what she’s going to do.”
Groups that want tougher gun laws took notice.
“We have a really stupendous governor and first lady here in Minnesota, we’re really lucky that they take the issue of gun violence seriously. That’s not something we see everywhere,” said Maggiy Emery, executive director of Protect Minnesota.
Rob Doar, senior vice president of government affairs with the Minnesota Gun Owners Caucus, said he was frustrated at the limitations on lawful gun ownership enacted by Walz and that he has left the door open to more.
“Unlike, you know, previous Democratic governors like [former Gov. Mark] Dayton, who we could actually have, you know, conversations with, it seemed like Tim Walz would not reject any proposals,” Doar said. “He would not say anything that he was opposed to.”
Doar said Walz has changed his policy platform to help move his political career forward.
“I think he’s exceptionally good politician in that way that he can read the political tea leaves and plot his positioning accordingly. But I don’t know where his actual personal stances are,” Doar said.
On the campaign trail, Walz and Vice President Kamala Harris have said firearm policies similar to those the governor made law in Minnesota would be on the agenda if the two are elected this fall.
At his debut rally with Harris in Philadelphia this month, both she and Walz boasted about him “being one of the best shots in Congress.” But both said it won’t stop their push for more gun-safety legislation.
“In Minnesota, we believe in the Second Amendment,” Walz said, “But we also believe in common-sense gun violence laws.”