Minnesota Governor Tim Walz's Full VP Acceptance Speech at the Democratic National Convention
Watch the full speech as Minnesota Governor Tim Walz accepts the vice presidential nomination at the Democratic National Convention. In a powerful address, Walz outlines his vision for America, emphasizing unity, progress, and the values that will guide the nation under a Democratic administration. This historic moment marks a pivotal point in the 2024 election. Don't miss the key highlights from this inspiring speech.
#TimWalz #VPNomination #DemocraticConvention #2024Election #Democrats #UnityAndProgress #PoliticalSpeech #HistoricMoment #DNC2024 #AmericanValues
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#TimWalz #VPNomination #DemocraticConvention #2024Election #Democrats #UnityAndProgress #PoliticalSpeech #HistoricMoment #DNC2024 #AmericanValues
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NewsTranscript
00:23Wow.
00:24Well, thank you.
00:27Thank you, first of all, to Vice President Harris.
00:32Thanks for putting your trust in me
00:34and for inviting me to be part of this incredible campaign.
00:43And a thank you to President Joe Biden
00:46for four years of strong, historic leadership.
00:56It's the honor of my life to accept your nomination
01:01for Vice President of the United States.
01:08We're all here tonight for one beautiful, simple reason.
01:16We love this country.
01:20So thank you to all of you here in Chicago
01:24and all of you watching at home tonight.
01:26Thank you for your passion.
01:28Thank you for your determination.
01:30And most of all, thank you for bringing the joy to this fight.
01:40Now, I grew up in Butte, Nebraska,
01:45a town of 400 people.
01:49I had 24 kids in my high school class.
01:53And none of them went to Yale.
01:58But I'll tell you what, growing up in a small town like that,
02:02you'll learn how to take care of each other.
02:07That family down the road, they may not think like you do.
02:12They may not pray like you do.
02:14They may not love like you do.
02:17But they're your neighbors.
02:19And you look out for them.
02:22And they look out for you.
02:25Everybody belongs.
02:28And everybody has a responsibility to contribute.
02:32For me, it was serving in the Army National Guard.
02:37I joined up two days after my 17th birthday,
02:42and I proudly wore our nation's uniform for 24 years.
02:49My dad, a Korean War-era Army veteran,
02:54died of lung cancer a couple years later.
02:57He left behind a mountain of medical debt.
03:01Thank God for Social Security survivor benefits.
03:07And thank God for the GI Bill
03:10that allowed my dad and me to go to college
03:14and millions of other Americans.
03:20Eventually, like the rest of my family,
03:23I fell in love with teaching.
03:27Three out of four of us married teachers.
03:32I wound up teaching social studies
03:36and coaching football at Mankato West High School.
03:41Go Scarlets!
03:47We ran a 44 defense.
03:50We played through to the whistle on every single play,
03:54and we even won a state championship.
03:59Never close the yearbook, people.
04:02But it was those players and my students
04:05who inspired me to run for Congress.
04:08They saw in me what I had hoped to instill in them,
04:12a commitment to the common good,
04:15an understanding that we're all in this together,
04:20and the belief that a single person
04:23can make a real difference for their neighbors.
04:28So there I was, a 40-something high school teacher
04:33with little kids, zero political experience,
04:37and no money, running in a deep red district.
04:42But you know what?
04:44Never underestimate a public school teacher.
04:48Never.
04:53I represented my neighbors in Congress for 12 years,
04:59and I learned an awful lot.
05:01I learned how to work across the aisle
05:04on issues like growing the rural economies
05:07and taking care of veterans.
05:09And I learned how to compromise without compromising my values.
05:15Then I came back to serve as governor,
05:18and we got right to work,
05:20making a difference in our neighbors' lives.
05:22We cut taxes for the middle class.
05:27We passed paid family and medical leave.
05:32We invested in fighting crime and affordable housing.
05:38We cut the cost of prescription drugs
05:40and helped people escape the kind of medical debt
05:43that nearly sank my family.
05:47And we made sure that every kid in our state
05:51gets breakfast and lunch every day.
05:58And while other states were banning books from their schools,
06:04we were banishing hunger from ours.
06:12We also protected reproductive freedom,
06:16because in Minnesota, we respect our neighbors
06:19and the personal choices they make.
06:24Even if we wouldn't make those same choices for ourselves,
06:29we've got a golden rule.
06:31Mind your own damn business.
06:39And that includes IVF and fertility treatments.
06:43And this is personal for Gwen and I.
06:48If you've never experienced the hell that is infertility,
06:52I guarantee you you know somebody who has.
06:55And I can remember praying each night for a phone call,
07:00the pit in your stomach when the phone had rang,
07:03and the absolute agony when we heard the treatments hadn't worked.
07:07It took Gwen and I years,
07:09but we had access to fertility treatments.
07:12And when our daughter was born, we named her Hope.
07:19Gus and Gwen, you are my entire world, and I love you.
07:32I'm letting you in on how we started a family,
07:37because this is a big part about what this election is about.
07:42Freedom.
07:44When Republicans use the word freedom,
07:48they mean that the government should be free to invade your doctor's office.
07:53Corporations, free to pollute your air and water.
07:58And banks, free to take advantage of customers.
08:03But when we Democrats talk about freedom,
08:06we mean the freedom to make a better life for yourself and the people that you love.
08:14Freedom to make your own health care decisions.
08:19And yeah, your kids' freedom to go to school without worrying about being shot dead in the hall.
08:30Look, I know guns.
08:34I'm a veteran. I'm a hunter.
08:37And I was a better shot than most Republicans in Congress, and I got the trophies to prove it.
08:45But I'm also a dad.
08:48I believe in the Second Amendment,
08:50but I also believe our first responsibility is to keep our kids safe.
09:00That's what this is all about.
09:02The responsibility we have to our kids, to each other,
09:07and to the future that we're building together,
09:11in which everyone is free to build the kind of life they want.
09:17But not everyone has that same sense of responsibility.
09:22Some folks just don't understand what it takes to be a good neighbor.
09:26Take Donald Trump and J.D. Vance.
09:32Their Project 2025 will make things much, much harder for people who are just trying to live their lives.
09:39They spent a lot of time pretending they know nothing about this.
09:44But look, I coached high school football long enough to know, and trust me on this,
09:49when somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they're going to use it.
09:58And we know if these guys get back in the White House,
10:03they'll start jacking up the costs on the middle class,
10:06they'll repeal the Affordable Care Act,
10:09they'll gut Social Security and Medicare,
10:14and they will ban abortion across this country, with or without Congress.
10:20Here's the thing, it's an agenda nobody asked for.
10:26It's an agenda that serves nobody except the richest and the most extreme amongst us.
10:36And it's an agenda that does nothing for our neighbors in need.
10:41Is it weird? Absolutely. Absolutely.
10:46But it's also wrong. And it's dangerous.
10:51It's not just me saying so. It's Trump's own people.
10:55They were with him for four years.
10:57They're warning us that the next four years will be much, much worse.
11:03You know, when I was teaching, every year we'd elect a student body president.
11:07And you know what? Those teenagers could teach Donald Trump a hell of a lot about what a leader is.
11:14Leaders don't spend all day insulting people and blaming others.
11:20Leaders do the work.
11:22So I don't know about you, I'm ready to turn the page on these guys.
11:26So go ahead, say it with me.
11:29We're not going back.
11:37We've got something better to offer the American people.
11:43It starts with our candidate, Kamala Harris.
11:50From her first day as a prosecutor, as a district attorney, as an attorney general,
11:56as a United States senator, and then our vice president,
12:00she's fought on the side of the American people.
12:03She's taken on the predators and fraudsters,
12:06she's taken down the transnational gangs,
12:09and she's stood up to powerful corporate interests.
12:12She has never hesitated to reach across that aisle if it meant improving your lives.
12:17And she's always done it.
12:19With energy, with passion, and with joy.
12:26Folks, we've got a chance to make Kamala Harris the next president of the United States.
12:39But I think we owe it to the American people
12:42to tell them exactly what she'd do as president before we ask them for their votes.
12:47So here, this is the part, clip and save it, and send it to your undecided relatives so they know.
12:54If you're a middle class family, or a family trying to get into the middle class,
12:58Kamala Harris is going to cut your taxes.
13:02If you're getting squeezed by prescription drug prices, Kamala Harris is going to take on big pharma.
13:11If you're hoping to buy a home, Kamala Harris is going to help make it more affordable.
13:18And no matter who you are, Kamala Harris is going to stand up and fight for your freedom
13:23to live the life that you want to lead.
13:27Because that's what we want for ourselves, and it's what we want for our neighbors.
13:35You know, you might not know it, but I haven't given a lot of big speeches like this.
13:41But I have given a lot of pep talks.
13:46So let me finish with this team.
13:53It's the fourth quarter.
13:57We're down a field goal.
13:59But we're on offense and we've got the ball.
14:02We're driving down the field.
14:06And boy, do we have the right team.
14:09Kamala Harris is tough.
14:11Kamala Harris is experienced.
14:13And Kamala Harris is ready.
14:16Our job, our job, our job, our job for everyone watching
14:22is to get in the trenches and do the blocking and tackling.
14:28One inch at a time.
14:30One yard at a time.
14:32One phone call at a time.
14:35One door knock at a time.
14:37One $5 donation at a time.
14:42Look, we've got 76 days.
14:48That's nothing.
14:50There'll be time to sleep when you're dead.
14:52We're going to leave it on the field.
14:58That's how we'll keep moving forward.
15:01That's how we'll turn the page on Donald Trump.
15:04That's how we'll build a country where workers come first.
15:08Health care and housing are human rights.
15:14And the government stays the hell out of your bedroom.
15:23That's how we make America a place where no child is left hungry.
15:29Where no community is left behind.
15:32Where nobody gets told they don't belong.
15:35That's how we're going to fight.
15:37And as the next President of the United States always says,
15:41when we fight, we win.
15:44When we fight, we win.
15:46When we fight, we win.
15:48Thank you. God bless.