Full Transcript of Tim Walz’s Speech at the Democratic Convention

Wow. Thank you. Thank you. Thank you. Wow. Thank you.

Thank you, first of all, to Vice President Harris. Thanks for putting your trust in me, and for inviting me to be part of this incredible campaign.

And a thank you to President Joe Biden, for four years of strong, historic leadership.

It’s the honor of my life to accept your nomination for vice president of the United States. We’re all here tonight for one beautiful, simple reason: We love this country.

So thank you, to all of you here in Chicago, and all of you watching at home tonight. Thank you for your passion. Thank you for your determination. And most of all, thank you for bringing the joy to this fight.

Now I grew up in Butte, Nebraska, a town of 400 people. I had 24 kids in my high school class. And none of them went to Yale.

But I’ll tell you what. Growing up in a small town like that, you learn how to take care of each other. That family down the road, they may not think like you do, they may not pray like you do. They may not love like you do. But they’re your neighbors. And you look out for them. And they look out for you. Everybody belongs. And everybody has a responsibility to contribute.

For me, it was serving in the Army National Guard. I joined up two days after my 17th birthday, and I proudly wore our nation’s uniform for 24 years. My dad, a Korean War-era Army veteran, died of lung cancer a couple of years later. He left behind a mountain of medical debt. Thank god for Social Security survivor benefits.