Biden, Obama hail Harris’ choice of Tim Walz as running mate

United States President Joe Biden has praised the selection of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz as the running mate of Vice President Kamala Harris.

Biden, who had endorsed Harris for the US 2024 presidential race, took to his X handle on Tuesday, saying that the Harris-Walz ticket “will be a powerful voice for working people and America’s great middle class.”

Biden tweeted, “The first major decision a party nominee makes is their choice for Vice President. And Kamala Harris has made a great decision in choosing Governor Tim Walz to be her running mate.

“I’ve known Tim Walz for nearly two decades, first during his time in Congress and as governor. A husband and father, he’s been a school teacher and a high school football coach. He served for 24 years in the Army National Guard and became the highest-ranking enlisted soldier to ever serve in Congress. As governor, he’s been a strong, principled and effective leader.

“The Harris-Walz ticket will be a powerful voice for working people and America’s great middle class. They will be the strongest defenders of our personal freedoms and our democracy. And they will ensure that America continues to lead the world and play its role as the indispensable nation.”

Biden noted that it was high time fellow Democrats and Americans “committed to freedom, democracy and American leadership in the world to rally behind the Harris-Walz ticket.

“Every generation of Americans faces a moment where they are asked to defend American democracy. That moment is now.”

The 81-year-old president pulled out of the presidential race following a stumbling debate performance that widely alarmed Democrats about his fitness for office and ability to defeat former president Donald Trump, who recently escaped an assassination plot.

Trump announced late Friday that he had agreed to debate Harris on Fox News on 4 September 2024.

“I have agreed with Fox News to debate Kamala Harris on Wednesday, 4 September,” Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.

In a statement shared on his X handle on Tuesday, former US President Barack Obama and his wife, Michelle, also commended the Harris-Walz ticket.

With an accompanying statement, Obama tweeted, “Like Vice President Harris, Governor #Tim_Walz believes that government works to serve us. Not just some of us, but all of us. That’s what makes him an outstanding governor, and that’s what will make him an even better Vice President. Michelle and I couldn’t be happier for Tim and Gwen, their family, and our country.”