Sen. JD Vance denies revealing who he has impersonate Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz during mock practice sessions ahead of next week’s vice presidential debate.
A NOTUS A report Monday revealed that Vance prepared for the Minnesotan by practicing with a popular GOP lawmaker from the same state, sources said.
They said that Tom Emmer, the Republican leader in the House of Representatives and the third-most powerful Republican delegate, helped Vance prepare for Walz.
But Vance denied this Monday afternoon during a campaign rally in Charlotte, North Carolina.
“Tom, a great representative from Minnesota, has not helped us yet,” Vance said.
Republican vice presidential nominee Sen. J.D. Vance, R-Ohio, is reportedly preparing for his debate against Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz by practicing against Rep. Tom Emmer, R-Minn.
“But I think we’re going to be calling on him in the coming weeks as we really start to think about how we can best defend our position in this debate,” Vance added.
The vice presidential candidates will compete live on CBS on Tuesday, October 1.
This is expected to be one of the last major televised events before voters cast their ballots in the presidential election.
In fact, some states have already begun early voting by mail, so the showdown could be influential for those who haven’t decided yet.
A source close to the debate preparations told NOTUS that Emmer has been rehearsing his role for the past month and that he was specifically chosen for the role because of his familiarity with the “nice guy from Minnesota” image.
But whether Walz will also adopt this Midwestern theme remains to be seen.
So Vance and his team have also prepared for an even more venomous version of the Democratic vice presidential nominee.
“JD has been preparing for assassination commission sessions for over a month, both via Zoom and in person,” the source told NOTUS.
Democratic vice presidential candidate, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, delivers a speech during a campaign event in Superior, Wisconsin, U.S., on September 14, 2024. Walz and Emmer both represented Minnesota in Congress
Republican House Leader Tom Emmer has been practicing his Walz impersonation for the past month to prepare Vance for his Oct. 1 debate
“The homicide squad has been peppering JD with question after question,” they added.
“Basically his team acts as a moderator and peppers him with questions to see how he reacts to things.”
Vance’s team is tired of Walz going on the attack, as Kamala Harris did to Donald Trump during their debate.
To mitigate this, Emmer, the sources said, tried to imitate Walz’s debating style.
The Republican Party chairman spent hours practicing the governor’s mannerisms and his efforts to improve the Democrats’ policy proposals, they said.
Walz and Vance are scheduled to debate Oct. 1 on CBS
“One of the overarching goals of next week’s debate is to shatter Walz’s false moderate image that would expose him as a leftist,” another source told the outlet about the Republican’s preparations.
Vance’s wife, Usha, is also participating in the Ohioan’s debate training, as is Trump campaign adviser Jason Miller, sources told NOTUS.