Failed 2024 Democratic vice presidential candidate and current Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz recently floated a potential 2028 presidential run, garnering mockery online as critics sarcastically implored him to throw his hat in the ring.
Laughing emojis and comments such as ‘Need a morning chuckle’ or ‘Yes please’ were splashed across conservative social media accounts after Walz floated a potential 2028 presidential run during a recent conversation with the New Yorker.
Walz ran alongside former Vice President Kamala Harris on the Democrats’ 2024 ticket in the waning months of the election cycle after former President Joe Biden dropped out of the race amid mounting concern over his mental acuity and age.
Walz demurred at first when asked if he would run for president during the New Yorker interview published Sunday, before saying he would run if the opportunity presented itself.
‘Well, I had a friend tell me, ‘Never turn down a job you haven’t been offered,’’ Walz said when asked if he would run for president.
‘If I think I could offer something … I would certainly consider that,’ he said. ‘I’m also, though, not arrogant enough to believe there’s a lot of people that can do this.’
He said that under the correct circumstances and if he has the right ‘skill set’ for the 2028 race, ‘I’ll do it.’
‘You might do it?’ the New Yorker asked.
‘I’ll do whatever it takes,’ Walz said. ‘I certainly wouldn’t be arrogant enough to think that it needs to be me.’
‘I’ve always said this: I didn’t prepare my life to be in these jobs, but my life prepared me well,’ he said. ‘And, if this experience I’ve had and what we’re going through right now prepares me for that, then I would. But I worry about people who have ambition for elected office. I don’t think you should have ambition. I think you should have a desire to do it if you’re asked to serve. And that’s kind of where I’m at.’
Social media critics had a field day on X over the remarks, resurrecting the ‘Tampon Tim’ moniker, mocking the prospect of a Walz presidency, while encouraging him to make a run official.
‘Tampon Tim’ was a nickname used by conservatives during the election cycle that mocked Walz’ Minnesota policies that provide menstrual products ‘to all menstruating students in restrooms regularly used by students,’ as opposed to stating the products were intended for female students.
After Biden’s exit from the 2024 race in July, Harris simultaneously launched her campaign as well as her search for a running mate, combing through a list of high-profile Democrats and lesser-known allies before choosing Walz.
Following the Democratic ticket’s loss, political strategists and insiders launched post-mortems on the campaign, with a handful pointing to Harris’ selection of Walz as her running mate as opposed to another candidate, such as Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, who is popular in the key battleground state that ultimately voted for President Donald Trump.
Walz added in his conversation with the New Yorker that he and Harris ended the campaign cycle on good terms, but that he has only spoken to the former vice president a handful of times since November 2024.
‘I’m doing my job, and she’s doing her job, and she’s out in California, I believe, living, and I’m here in beautiful Minnesota, where the weather’s always great,’ he said.
‘Well, maybe she doesn’t want to talk to me after we got this thing done,’ Walz said while laughing when asked why they don’t speak more frequently. ‘No, I think it’s just there’ll be a time and a place. But we left good, and my family misses her. My daughter, especially.’
Fox News Digital reached out to Walz’s office for any additional comment on a potential presidential run or response to social media critics, but did not immediately receive a reply.