Walz left positive impression on Cortez Masto in interviews

U.S. Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto had never met Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz until last week, shortly before he was selected as Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate in her bid for the White House.

But the Nevada Democrat walked away from their only meeting impressed.

Cortez Masto liked Walz’s fighting spirit. She liked his authenticity. And she was taken with his background — a former congressman, high school teacher and football coach with deep Midwest roots.

Walz can walk into any room “and talk with just about anyone because he’s got this full depth and record of experience,” said Cortez Masto, who was part of a three-member panel that interviewed six vice presidential candidates before Harris made her choice.

“He knows how to fight for and ensure that we’re looking out for working families, and he can talk about how we stand up for our freedoms and keep our community safe,” Cortez Masto said.

Cortez Masto, along with former Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh and Harris campaign adviser Cedric Richmond, met with Walz and Harris’ other running mate finalists Friday.

Just days later, Harris introduced Walz as her pick for vice president to go up against Republican former President Donald Trump and his running mate, fellow conservative firebrand JD Vance.

The choice of Walz was consequential and closely watched, with Harris’ shortlist including Gov. Josh Shapiro of Pennsylvania, a key swing state, and U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly of Arizona.

Cortez Masto has had a longstanding friendship and professional relationship with Harris, which led to the Nevadan being placed on the screening panel. Both women were former attorneys general — Harris in California and Cortez Masto in Nevada — and they were elected at the same time to serve in the Senate.

Cortez Masto said she promised Harris she would always be candid with her and that “she also knows I come from a swing state and came off a tough race.”

Cortez Masto said she conducted the interviews with her constituents in mind.

She said she drilled down on issues Nevadans care about — reproductive freedoms, keeping communities safe and supporting working families.

“The issues that we’re dealing with (in Nevada) really reflect the country. We’re so diverse,” she said.

“I’ve always said, if you’re a presidential candidate and you can come into Nevada and talk with everyone and listen to them and connect with them, then you’re going to be successful across the country,” she said.

Harris is certainly not taking Nevada for granted.

She visited six times this year before President Joe Biden dropped out of the race. And Cortez Masto will be present Saturday for Harris’ seventh stop.

It will mark Harris’ first visit to the Silver State as the Democratic presidential candidate, and Walz will be at her side.

Cortez Masto has played a role in Harris’ previous Nevada visits, like when she joined the vice president in her first visit of the year to support the Culinary Workers Union Local 226.

Cortez Masto has also backed the Biden-Harris administration legislatively, helping pass the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. The bill created more than 286,000 new jobs in Nevada and unleashed nearly $10 billion in private-sector investment in the state, according to a June report from the White House.

Harris has spoken about her relationship with Cortez Masto in the past. In June, when she stopped to thank elected leaders at a Las Vegas campaign event, she singled out Cortez Masto first.

“I know Sen. Catherine Cortez Masto was here earlier. She and I were AGs together. She is doing an extraordinary job as a senator,” Harris said.

After the vice presidential interviews, Cortez Masto said she left with a great sense of hope for the future of the party.

“As Democrats, we have a deep bench of rising stars who get the issues that our working families are dealing with and are willing to fight for them,” Cortez Masto said. “That was my takeaway.”

haajrah.gilani@gmg vegas.com / 702-990-8923 / @haajrahgilani