Plaid Dad – Tim Walz

Candidate for Vice-President of the US

Some were initially surprised that Tim Walz was chosen as Kamala Harris’ V.P. As it turns out, this “Plaid Dad” down to earth, affable, dedicated warrior of good-will appears to have been an excellent pick.

While watching the Democratic convention and listening to Tim Walz accept his nomination as Vice President something sweet, spontaneous and truly genuine happened. At the end of his speech, Walz’ son, Gus, age 16 who is neuro-diverse, stood up, looked around and stated repeatedly to whomever would listen, “That’s my dad. That’s my dad.” It was so touching – pure emotion and love – it brought tears to my eyes. It was a beautiful moment.

Somehow that moment has stayed with me, and I like to think of it as the contrast between the two campaigns. The mean-spirited, rude, disrespectful, misogynistic, fearmongering, darkness of the GOP campaign and the joy, kindness, uplifting, genuine, laughter-filled, positive, future-forward campaign of the Democrats. Of course, there’s more to the stor…