Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) called on “old white men” to listen to women on abortion Thursday after Kamala Harris visited a Planned Parenthood clinic in his state, a stop believed to be a first to such a facility by a U.S. president or vice president.
Walz, who signed bills that enshrined the right to abortion into state law last year, joined Harris on her historic visit as she declared a “very serious health crisis” facing the country in remarks that highlighted Democrats making reproductive rights a key issue ahead of the 2024 election.
CNN’s Kaitlan Collins, in an interview with Walz, noted that Joe Biden doesn’t use the word “abortion” often and his views on abortion have “evolved” before asking if the president should “lean more into that” language before November.
“I think old white men need to learn how to talk about this a little more. And I think the biggest thing is: listen to women. Listen to what they’re saying,” said Walz, who noted that Harris used words “some people don’t want to hear” like “uterus” during her visit.
“We’ve seen that when we listen to them, they’re speaking loudly on the issue, and they’re speaking at the ballot box,” he added.
Walz later stated that the contrast “couldn’t be greater” when comparing Biden to former President Donald Trump on the issue.
“He brags about a lot of things that are not true: He did not create jobs, he’s not a scratch golfer, he’s not in super good shape, but he did rip Roe out. He did appoint judges who are taking that away, and he will do it again,” Walz said about Trump.
He continued, “So I think it’s good to hear the language. I think the president’s out there making it clear, and the contrast is he said he will sign into law, codifying Roe into law, Donald Trump says he would make the ban nationwide. You couldn’t be clearer.”