Saturday was a study in contrasts as both campaigns had people out at college football games.
Former President Donald Trump was cheered wildly at the Alabama-Georgia showdown. He had great fun with the people chanting "USA," and on top of all that, Kamala Harris failed miserably with her effort to troll him. The media had given a lot of coverage to the claim that she was going to have a plane fly over the stadium with a banner saying "Trump Punting the 2nd Debate"—but it never happened. The Harris campaign blamed the weather. But whatever the reason, it failed miserably.
But the Harris-Walz campaign also didn't do well with Tim Walz at the Michigan game. The Wolverines were playing Minnesota and Walz claimed he always wanted to go to a Michigan game.
While Trump was shown a lot of love in Alabama, Walz was booed and called names in Michigan.
Michigan fans were very disturbed with Walz because they were forced to wait outside in the rain for half an hour while his motorcade arrived and he was ushered in. They booed the motorcade and told him to "Get out of here!" They also chanted "Tampon Tim" at him. That pertained to a law Walz signed in Minnesota allowing free tampons, including in boys' rooms in schools.
Then there was another controversy about what he did when he was walking out to the tunnel. This video went viral.
He is wildly waving again, as he is wont to do. But many also thought it showed Walz giving the finger as someone shouted "Trump 2024" on the video.
It's not clear what the provenance of the video is and the clip looks a little weird right at that point. That may be the rain.
But here's another picture that was posted that shows another angle at about the same time. This shows he's clearly pointing with his index finger. You decide.
The Vice Presidential candidate debate is coming this week on Tuesday between JD Vance and Tim Walz.
Democrats have been trying to sell Walz as an authentic Midwestern guy and paint Vance as "weird." But it's Walz who is always doing weird things, like the strange gesticulations he's always making. It's also pretty insulting to the American dream when they try to attack Vance as "weird" when he's everything that the American dream is supposed to be about -- born into poor and difficult circumstances, who through the dint of his own effort was able to achieve, get into an Ivy League school, become a famous lawyer, a senator, and now a candidate for Vice President. That's a great testament to Vance's ability.
A CNN panel was talking about the debate on Sunday. Another panelist offered that Walz was "consequential." That got commentator Scott Jennings started, as he chortled at that.
He said that he didn't find him "consequential." Jennings didn't hold back, "Walz is a buffoon."
I like the term "Howard Dean scream," but "buffoon" works well too.
Jennings ripped into him.
This guy is the only schoolteacher in America who brags that none of his students could get into an Ivy League school. He's had one consequential press interaction with our Dana Bash, who asked him about the fabrications in his own resume and his reaction was essentially "Me no understand words good." I mean he's a buffoon. He's on a free ride for running under Harris. He gets very little press. They don't let him talk to the press for a reason.
I want one thing out of this debate. I want JD Vance to go out there and get under his skin. [Walz] has a legendary hot, short temper. A lot of governors do, but apparently he does. I want JD Vance to go out there and have him explain why he is denigrating JD Vance's story, small town America, ends up making something better out of his life, which is something we should want for every kid.
You can see Jake Tapper looking like he was nervous about that remark. But it was right on target.
Meanwhile, as Walz attacks Vance, he isn't being forthcoming about himself, as Jennings pointed out. He can't explain the stolen valor and why he has these false things in his background. And if they can't even put him out there with confidence to answer questions or do interviews -- he's just not very good. It sounds like the Harris campaign is worried about the answers he might give as well. They're already saddled with a bad enough problem with Harris' word salads.
That doesn't bode well for Walz in the debate.