Politics

Tim Walz Doesn't Get Libertarians

Libertarians probably aren't buying what Liz Cheney is selling.

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Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz | Carol Guzy/Zuma Press/Newscom
(Carol Guzy/Zuma Press/Newscom)

Does Tim Walz know what a libertarian is? The Minnesota governor and Democratic vice presidential candidate referenced the libertarian philosophy during a recent appearance on Jon Stewart's The Daily Show. For some reason, Walz is possessed of the notion that former Rep. Liz Cheney (R–Wyo.)—of all people—is going to sell libertarians on voting for Vice President Kamala Harris.

Stewart, to his credit, is deeply suspicious of the Cheneys. As a principled voice of opposition to the Iraq War and the foreign policy mistakes of the Bush administration, Stewart has relentlessly criticized the Cheney family's influence over the Republican Party. The Cheneys are no longer welcome in GOP circles, however, and have seemingly integrated themselves into the Democratic Party. Having broken with Trump over the former president's (admittedly loathsome) attempts to remain in power following his 2020 election loss, Liz Cheney is now firmly in support of Harris—and is even appearing on the campaign trail with her. There are rumors that Cheney could join the Cabinet of a President Harris.

During his conversation with Walz, Stewart asked the veep candidate why the campaign thought it was such a good idea to lean on Cheney to make an affirmative case for Harris. After all, Democrats have spent much of the last two decades describing the Cheneys as avatars of evil.

Walz's response was eyebrow-raising.

"There is still a core group of folks out there, the Don't Tread on Me, the Reagan piece of this, the libertarian piece, the constitutional piece, there are a lot of people out there," he said. "I think Liz Cheney and Dick Cheney give permission to those people who want to find a reason to do the right thing."

Walz seems confused. Libertarians, constitutionalists, Don't Tread on Me folks—these are all people who fundamentally dislike the Cheneys to an equal or even greater degree than the standard Republican voter. Most libertarian-leaning Tea Party types regard the Cheneys as big government authoritarians. Dick Cheney's tenure as vice president was marked by a massive expansion of federal power, including the Patriot Act and the war on terror. Liberty-inclined Republicans like Rep. Thomas Massie (R–Ky.) and Sen. Rand Paul (R–Ky.) are famous, in part, because they clashed with the Cheneys. For instance, Paul slammed Cheney and George W. Bush in 2014 for emboldening terrorism worldwide by launching regime-change wars that destabilized the Middle East. He said that Cheney-esque policies had turned Iraq and Libya into "jihadist wonderlands."

If Paul vouched for Harris, it might theoretically persuade some libertarians to vote for her. For his part, Paul has maintained that he prefers Trump to Harris, but is unenthusiastic about the former president given Trump's broken promises on reining in spending. (Paul also slammed Trump's tariffs in a recent piece for The Wall Street Journal.) Liz Cheney's support for Harris, on the other hand, is essentially a negative endorsement.

 

This Week on Free Media

I am joined by Amber Duke to discuss Trump's visit to McDonald's, Elon Musk's million-dollar giveaway, Morning Joe's Trump Derangement Syndrome, and Tim Walz pitching Liz Cheney to libertarians.

I'll be on vacation next week, so no Free Media videos or newsletters. We will be back the following week for special election coverage!

 

Worth Watching

While I'm on vacation, I'll be playing The Legend of Zelda: Echoes of Wisdom, which I haven't started yet. I've heard good things, though.