Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz went from a relative unknown to Kamala Harris’ pick for vice president in part because of a visit she made to a Planned Parenthood abortion clinic earlier this year, CNN’s Jeff Zeleny said Tuesday.
“They did not have much of a relationship,” Zeleny reported on air. “But another source, just a moment ago, pointed me back to a visit that Vice President Harris took to the Twin Cities in Minnesota in March. And she visited a Planned Parenthood clinic. … Gov. Walz was at this Planned Parenthood clinic. … And I'm told that she walked away impressed by his demeanor, how he carried himself. And she liked him, but did not know much about him.”
Walz was the most high-profile Democrat to join Harris for the March trip to the clinic, which marked the first time a sitting vice president visited an abortion clinic. Harris went there as Joe Biden’s campaign used her as a surrogate to tout the president’s record on reproductive rights and support for abortions.
For his part, Walz has been governor of Minnesota as the state strengthened abortion rights. Last year, he signed a law that codified abortion rights into the state constitution, and he issued two executive orders meant to shield patients and Minnesota abortion providers from penalties or lawsuits from states that restrict the procedure.
