AUSTIN, Texas — Last year, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz became a household name when he was selected to be former Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate.

Walz’s blunt, Midwestern personality caught the attention of many Democrats during the election season, and he brought that energy to Austin last weekend. 

What You Need To Know

  • The former Democratic vice-presidential candidate sat down with “Today, Explained” podcast host Sean Rameswaram at South by Southwest on Saturday to talk about the 2024 election and the future of his party

  • Walz was very candid in the interview about his views on the U.S. Congress and the first couple of months of President Donald Trump’s second term

  • He praised Rep. Al Green, D-Houston, for standing up for what he believed in. Green was recently censured by the U.S. House for interrupting Trump’s address

  • Walz also shouted out his alma mater at the University of Houston and talked about other issues facing the Lone Star State like the measles outbreak in West Texas

The former Democratic vice-presidential candidate sat down with “Today, Explained” podcast host Sean Rameswaram at South by Southwest on Saturday to talk about the 2024 election and the future of his party. 

The hour-long conversation was shortened into a 30-minute episode titled “A Walz to Remember.” The two discussed several things, including some Texas-centric topics.

Rameswaram opened up the conversation by asking Walz if he still thinks Republicans are “weird,” a term Walz used during the campaign to describe his opponents. 

“Oh hell yes,” replied Walz. “Look obsessing with choices people are making with their own lives that has nothing to do with you. That is weird.”

While some people find his way of speaking refreshing, Walz admitted he has gotten in trouble for his comments recently. He posted on X last month “Elon Musk is a terrible president,” which he says almost landed him in legal trouble.

“He [Musk] threatened to sue me after that,” Walz claimed.

Walz was very candid in the interview about his views on the U.S. Congress and the first couple of months of President Donald Trump’s second term. 

“I would like to live in precedented times. I’m sick of living in unprecedented times,” Walz said.

Walz, a former high school geography teacher and football coach, talked about his time in Washington, D.C., and when asked if he would run for Congress again, Walz replied, “I would rather eat glass.”

Despite that, Walz praised some members of Congress, including Rep. Al Green, D-Houston, who was recently censured by the U.S. House for interrupting Trump’s address.

“I served with Al Green. That is a good man,” Walz said, which garnered applause. 

Walz went on to critique some of his fellow Democrats for voting to censure the longtime congressman.

“You should never vote to censure Al Green for standing up,” Walz said. 

Walz also shouted out his alma mater at the University of Houston and talked about other issues facing the Lone Star State like the measles outbreak in West Texas. He seemingly called out state and federal leaders for not doing enough to curb the outbreak. 

“I haven’t met a single constituent that says ignoring measles is a good thing,” Walz said. 

Despite his harsh critiques, Walz did say he agrees with Trump on two things: getting rid of daylight saving time and the penny. 

“The world is melting down around us, but Donald and I are solving the penny crisis,” Walz said. 

Looking back on the 2024 campaign, Walz said he wished they could have talked more about how inflation was hurting the average American. Walz said former President Joe Biden could have proposed sending stimulus checks to people in 2023 to battle the rising prices. 

You can listen to the full podcast episode on vox.com.