Rep. Mikie Sherrill (D-Montclair) and Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz have a couple of things in common: both are U.S. military veterans (Sherrill a former Navy helicopter pilot, Walz a former member of the Army National Guard), and both helped Democrats win control of the House when they flipped key swing districts (Walz in 2006, Sherrill in 2018).
Now, with Walz joining Vice President Kamala Harris’s presidential ticket, Sherrill has taken up the Walz mantle, appearing on CNN and on a Democratic National Committee press call to defend her party’s new vice presidential nominee from Republican attacks on his military record.
“The accusations against Governor Walz are so incredibly offensive,” Sherrill told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins last night. “It’s reminiscent of the Swift Boat bullshit that Senator Kerry faced in his election; we’re seeing the same people trying to reignite this type of slanderous campaign against a man who served for 24 years in the National Guard… To try to make up some story against his service is really offensive, and even more offensive because these accusations are being lodged by another veteran.”
That other veteran is Ohio Senator and Republican vice presidential nominee JD Vance, who accused Walz of misrepresenting his record and ducking deployment to Iraq in 2005. (Walz left the National Guard in May 2005, when he was already a candidate for Minnesota’s 1st congressional district, and his unit received orders to deploy to Iraq soon afterwards, per CNN.)
Sherrill acknowledged – as Walz himself has – that the governor did not serve in a combat zone, but insisted that military service comes in many different forms, which she said is something veterans themselves recognize.
“To come at him and suggest that his service wasn’t honorable, or that despite all the records to the contrary he somehow left his troops wanting leadership – it’s just ridiculous,” Sherrill said.
A month ago, Sherrill joined what was then a small-but-growing number of congressional Democrats calling for President Joe Biden to step aside as his party’s nominee – a move that angered many New Jersey politicians, who accused Sherrill of disloyalty to her party’s standard-bearer. But within hours of Biden departing the race on July 21, Sherrill endorsed Harris to be the new Democratic nominee, and has loudly supported Harris’s campaign since then.
That could be to Sherrill’s benefit in the long run as the congresswoman looks ahead to a potential gubernatorial campaign in 2025, in which any national exposure (and connections to the Harris camp) would be an asset. But for now, Sherrill – along with most of her fellow Democrats – is focused on getting the Harris-Walz ticket into office.
“We know that with a 24-year record of service; we know that as one of the most senior-ranking enlisted people ever to enter the House of Representatives, he will serve us well,” Sherrill said on yesterday’s DNC call with several other military veteran Democrats. “I’m so proud to support Vice President Harris, and I’m so proud to support her pick in Governor Walz. This is a fantastic ticket that veterans can get behind, because we know they will continue to fight to support our veterans.”