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Democratic Gov. Tim Walz is pledging to turn the page after the vice-presidential candidate lost in last week’s election. Over the past three months, Walz worked to build up Vice President Kamala Harris’ presidential campaign and scorned Republican Donald Trump for being a threat to democracy.  

But at a Veterans Day event in Arden Hills, Walz backed off his criticism of Trump and struck a conciliatory tone.   

“Look, we just proved to the rest of the world that our democracy is strong,” Walz said on an upbeat note. “We had a free and fair election. We now come back together to ensure that President-elect Trump is successful as he possibly can be, especially on the issues that we care about." 

Walz, himself a National Guard veteran, talked about the importance of honoring and caring for people who serve in the nation’s military. And even though his Republican critics took issue with his National Guard career during Walz’s campaign for vice president, Walz stressed bipartisan unity.  

“My greatest privilege was serving as a ranking member on the House Veterans Affairs Committee,” Walz said. “When people would come in that room, you couldn’t tell who was the Republican and who was the Democrat.”

Walz also called the Minneapolis VA the “best hospital in America“ and said the creation of three new veteran’s homes in Minnesota helped reduce veteran homelessness.   

Walz didn’t release any new initiatives to support veterans during his speech. He will release his plans for a new two-year budget early next year.  

Mark Zdechlik

Author

At his second official event since the Democratic presidential ticket lost to Republican Donald Trump, Gov. Tim Walz noted the nation’s democracy “is strong.”

Walz commends veterans and says it’s time for the country to unite

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