2024-08-19
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Biden and Harris were not able to escape the shadow of "declining economic atmosphere in the United States" when the US economic situation was booming. Now that cracks have appeared in the US labor market, the situation may be even more difficult. At present, the US labor market is declining at a worrying rate, and opinion polls have shown again and again that inflation is the top priority for voters. No matter how much wages rise, it is still difficult to outperform inflation, and if there are not enough job opportunities, people's mood will be even lower. More importantly, this will seriously affect Harris' economic propaganda as the presumptive candidate of the new Democratic Party.
Therefore, from an economic perspective, Harris chose Minnesota Governor Waltz as her running mate to a certain extent because the two have a high degree of consensus on economic policies and Waltz's governing record can resonate with the economic demands of voters in Midwestern swing states.
Waltz's Economic Policies
Judging from Waltz's record and public statements as governor of Minnesota, his policy proposals are consistent with Harris' vision and direction in areas such as tax policy, welfare spending and health care, and are more left-leaning than Biden's economic stance.
Walz's tax policy record of vigorously pushing for tax increases is close to the goals of the Democratic progressive wing.Tom Emmer, a Republican congressman from Minnesota, believes that Waltz "has been committed to turning Minnesota into Harris's hometown of California." In 2023, Waltz implemented a tax increase of nearly $10 billion in Minnesota, and the highest income tax rate ranked fifth among the states; Minnesota is one of the few states that still levies an estate tax, and on top of the federal tax rate of 40%, it also levies an estate tax of up to 16%.
Increasing welfare spending is also an important policy for Waltz.During his tenure as governor, he established a system of paid family and medical leave, which can be up to 20 weeks per year; provided a variety of benefits to illegal immigrants, such as making about 81,000 illegal immigrants in the state eligible for driver's licenses and health insurance through the "Minnesota Care" public market; and funded the "North Star Promise Program" to provide free college education for students with family incomes below $80,000. CNN believes that Harris's choice of Waltz shows that she hopes to significantly increase welfare spending and promote universal health care. If Harris comes to power, she will try to enact such laws nationwide.
also,Waltz is also a champion of action on climate change.The governor's office announced that it would require electric vehicle charging infrastructure to be installed in or near new commercial and multi-family buildings to subsidize electric vehicles, and require public utilities to produce 80% carbon-free electricity by 2030 and 100% by 2040. This is consistent with Harris' goal of promoting "climate justice." The Green New Deal Network, an alliance of 19 environmental progressive organizations, believes that although Biden has passed important climate legislation, the two Democratic candidates are more progressive and more attractive on environmental issues.
Waltz's economic help
Responding to the economic demands of voters in swing states.Currently, Harris has narrowed the gap between Biden and Trump, but it is not because Trump's support rate has dropped, but because she has brought back some of the voters who "abandoned" Biden in 2020. She has injected vitality into the Democratic Party and improved the prospects of high voter turnout in the November election. But Harris is still far from the considerable majority Biden needs to win in 2020, not enough to replicate Biden's victory in the Electoral College in 2020.
Therefore, Harris still needs to work hard to win the support of white working-class voters in order to gain the support of voters in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania. Waltz has a record of winning in Republican-dominated districts and has a base of support for the Democratic Party in the Midwest. He and his wife do not hold any stocks or other securities and do not own any real estate. In contrast, Vance, the Republican vice presidential candidate, owns multiple properties and has invested in a range of assets such as gold and cryptocurrencies. The US news website Axios believes that the financial status of the two candidates is two versions of the American dream. Waltz brought a progressive voice to the campaign and helped consolidate the support of white working-class people in the key "blue wall" swing states in the Midwest.
Waltz is popular with organized labor.Last year, Waltz appeared at the forefront of the strike with the auto workers of the United Auto Workers Union, and it took two years for Waltz to overcome the strong opposition of ride-sharing companies to sign a bill, making Minnesota the first state to set a minimum wage standard for Uber and Lyft drivers. During his tenure, he enacted laws to allow workers to enjoy paid sick leave, paid family leave and medical leave. The National Education Association, the largest labor union in the United States, has clearly announced its support for Harris and Waltz. McCaul, chairman of the United Steelworkers Union, believes that Waltz has implemented many of the most important worker-friendly reforms in history. According to the latest data, the United States added only 114,000 jobs in July, and the unemployment rate rose from 4.1% to 4.3%, which increased the attention of employment issues in the general election. Therefore, union support is particularly important.
Meanwhile, campaigns for both parties have mostly focused on attacking opponents rather than laying out plans for the future of the United States. Waltz is popular locally for his pragmatic governing style.The campaign will focus more on policy discussions to help Harris convey effective economic messages to voters.
Republicans have been using Americans' fatigue with inflation to oppose Biden and Harris' economic policies. But Trump and his campaign team have never focused on real policy rhetoric or legislative blueprints. After Waltz was announced as the Democratic vice presidential candidate, the Republicans began to attack him on the grounds that "Waltz's high tax rates and high welfare policies have led to an outflow of population from Minnesota." They pointed out that in recent years, Minnesota's economic growth has lagged behind the overall US economy and its population growth has stagnated. Although Waltz cannot be blamed entirely for "population loss," his policies of raising taxes and increasing government spending have not played a positive role in Minnesota.
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