Tim Walz down to earth at Dutch Creek Farms in Northfield, Minnesota in November 2023.
Keystone
Kamala Harris’ Vice President Tim Walz impresses with his unpretentious demeanor. This is not only due to his choice of clothing, which is more reminiscent of “farm” than “office”, but also because of its obviously used condition.
In TV crime series, the duo of “bad cop” and “good cop” is a regular feature in order to extract information from those arrested. Kamala Harris is also relying on this principle in her presidential candidacy, but in a fashion sense: she is the elegant, well-groomed businesswoman, her vice president Tim Walz is the boyish type in casual wear. That is probably a smart move, even if one is almost astonished in view of so many obvious contradictions.
A farmer’s wardrobe
Walz, 60, is everything Harris is not, namely a so-called old white man (although the two are actually only a year apart). And is intended to appeal to those undecided voters who, despite her track record, find Harris too female, too black and too elitist. She represents urban America. He represents rural America: the former teacher and football coach has been governor of Minnesota since 2019. He belongs to the DFL, the “Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party”, the Democratic Farmer and Labor Party of Minnesota founded in 1944. But his political views are progressive for America: he supports parental leave and emphasizes that the right to abortion in Minnesota also applies to women from other states.
And although he wears well-fitting suits for official appearances, he maintains an American farmhand-style wardrobe whenever possible, consisting of T-shirts, work jackets and boots from all-American brands such as Carhartt.
Contrast to Trump
Of course, Walz did not invent the trick of dressing as if he did not have an office job but was doing so-called honest work with his hands. Just think of Volodymyr Zelensky, who has made his military uniforms his trademark. Or of all the German politicians from Olaf Scholz to Markus Söder who pose in flooded areas in rubber boots.
But what makes Walz better than his style predecessors is that his clothes are obviously worn and worn. You can tell that Walz, who grew up in a small town in Nebraska, is neither acting nor posing, even though the campaign team is now marketing caps similar to his.
Photos like this one from a political event in 2016 prove that Tim Walz’s farmer look is not a short-term election campaign trick.
The T-shirts are baggy, the trousers are baggy, the jacket collars are worn. Walz always walks the fine line between unkempt and unkempt, but still appears personable and well-groomed, but above all modest, authentic and honest. The latter could be very helpful in the fight against Donald Trump, who is known to have his own, quite creative understanding of truth. The rock-solid Tim Walz is a good contrast not only to Kamala Harris, but also to Donald Trump. Whether that will be enough for victory in November remains to be seen. In terms of fashion, the Kamala-Walz duo is certainly convincing.
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