MA Gov. Healey: Walz ‘Was Trying to De-Escalate’ During Riots 

On Wednesday’s broadcast of ABC’s “GMA3,” Massachusetts Gov. Maura Healey (D) responded to criticisms of 2024 Democratic vice presidential candidate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz’s (D) handling of riots in the state in 2020 by stating that a governor’s job “is to de-escalate, to protect public safety, to bring calm. That’s what Tim Walz was doing in that moment, he was trying to de-escalate.”

Co-host Erielle Reshef asked, “Governor, Republicans are taking the opportunity to go after Walz for his record and what they say was a missed opportunity or mishap during the protests in his own state, a mishandling of COVID, according to them. And saying that picking him is catering to the far left of your party. How do you respond to that?”

Healey responded, “Couldn’t be further from the truth, Erielle. I’m a former attorney general and a Governor. The job of a governor is to de-escalate, to protect public safety, to bring calm. That’s what Tim Walz was doing in that moment, he was trying to de-escalate. You contrast that with Donald Trump, who, what was he doing at that time? He’s sending out divisive tweets, he’s tear-gassing protesters and staging photo-ops, fueling the fire, ginning things up. That’s not leadership. That’s not statesmanship. Tim Walz is about leadership, he’s about standing up for people, he’s about protecting people.”

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