The Internet Is Here For Tim Walz

It’s been a whirlwind few weeks for national politics in general and the Democratic party in particular. Somehow, it’s only been about two and a half weeks since Joe Biden ended his presidential campaign and Vice President Kamala Harris became the presumptive nominee for the Dems. And, of course, every would-be president needs a running mate, so it was a frantic scramble, in the Harris campaign and in public discourse, to figure out who it would be. But while a handful of names were seriously floated, today we learned that Minnesota governor Tim Walz is the lucky winner.

Certainly, the competition was stiff, with plenty to commend (and be a source of concern for) all the candidates. But one thing no one can take from Walz? His dad vibes are immaculate and social media is having a field day turning his folksy dad energy into a treasure trove of memes the likes of which we haven’t seen since that guy warned us about the dangers of 40 or 50 feral hogs.

A little background for those not familiar with the candidate — and, indeed, many people have yet to be introduced to the two-term Midwestern governor. Walz, 60, spent 24 years in the National Guard and about as much time as a social studies teacher in Minnesota Public Schools. He was also a football coach and the faculty advisor for the school’s first Gay-Straight Alliance, which kind of gives you a sense of his appeal to a broad swathe of potential voters. He first entered politics in 2006 as a member of the United States House of Representatives, where he served until 2018. That year, he handily won Minnesota’s gubernatorial race and did it again in 2022. Depending on one’s own politics, his policies have been lauded or derided as progressive and liberal.

But, again, whether or not you agree with his political aims, the gentle glow of his aura of dadness is unimpeachable.

It would appear that Democrats and those more inclined to support a Democratic ticket on Twitter are delighted by Harris’ pick.

The fact that the choice appears so popular and not divisive has in and of itself become a joke, including with nationally recognized Democrats like AOC.

Many of these memes highlight Walz’s public image of a folksy, down-to-earth, quintessentially Midwestern guy…

Some folks are delighted in spite of themselves all because of the soothing dad energy of Tim Walz…

Because, truly, it comes down to the dadness of it all…

They are also charmed by his actual dad cred: his relationship with his daughter, Hope.

Honestly, regardless of your political leanings, it’s been a pretty fun day on social media. Where the election goes from here, well, most of us have been through enough of them at this point to understand that there are very few fun days, so let’s just bask in all this while it lasts.