Tim Walz is supposed to help Kamala Harris get into the White House. Donald Trump’s team has been spreading well-known allegations against him for years now.
It is the high point of his political career so far: It has been clear for a few days that Tim Walz will be running for the White House as Kamala Harris’s running mate. Almost 30 years ago, however, Walz was at a low point: the police caught him driving his car with too much alcohol in his blood. Donald Trump supporters have been sharing the story, which has been known for years since Walz was appointed as Harris’ running mate, on social media for a few days.
In 1995, Walz was a 31-year-old high school teacher in Nebraska when he was pulled over for speeding, failed a breathalyzer test and was arrested. He was released on bail the following day. He later pleaded guilty to reckless driving.
According to his own statement, he had enjoyed watching a football game that evening, had also had a drink and then drove home.
When Walz saw a car coming quickly from behind him, he accelerated, assuming someone was following him, his lawyer later explained in court. Walz stopped when the officer turned on the patrol car’s flashing lights. The police officer on the scene determined that Walz’s silver Miata was traveling at 155 kilometers per hour in an area where the speed limit was 88 kilometers per hour. His blood alcohol level was 1.28 per mille, compared to the legal limit of 1.0 at the time.
In an interview with the Minneapolis Star Tribune in 2018, Walz described that night as one that changed his life. He had married the year before. His wife, Gwen Walz, told the Star Tribune how she told her husband after the arrest, “You’re married now. You have responsibilities and you can’t make any more stupid decisions.”
After his arrest, Walz’s driver’s license was suspended for 90 days. He offered to resign from his teaching job at Alliance High School, but the principal talked the popular teacher out of the idea. The judge in the case later agreed to downgrade the charges against Walz: instead of driving while intoxicated (DUI), Walz was convicted of reckless driving. The judge imposed a $200 fine plus court costs. The 60-year-old apologized to his students.
A lot has changed for Walz since that night. After his time as a teacher, he was elected six times as a congressman and twice as governor of Minnesota. Today, his relationship with alcohol has completely changed: Walz says he no longer drinks.
