MINNEAPOLIS — Kamala Harris’ selection of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz running for the Democratic vice presidency has rekindled debate over how he handled the biggest crisis of his political career.
Minneapolis and St. Paul erupted after a white Minneapolis police officer George Floyd murdered. The Murder of a black man in 2020 led to a national settlement over racial discrimination and police misconduct. What the governor did — or failed to do — during the protests and their aftermath continues to draw sharp criticism from Republicans who say he should have acted sooner. And some progressives complain that Walz was not assertive enough in fixing the state’s police departments.
Here are some key points about how Walz handled the protests and police reform efforts:
Floyd was killed on May 25, 2020, Memorial Day. Bystander video of his dying cries of “I can’t breathe” spread quickly and fueled outrage. The protests were initially largely peaceful, albeit with some vandalism and clashes with police.
Great looting began on May 27, two nights later. The police chief asked Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey for help from the National Guard. Walz, a 24-year veteran of the National Guard, approved a limited activation on May 28, although he still left most of the response in the hands of local authorities.
The destruction only worsened that night. Protesters took control of the 3rd Precinct police station, setting it on fire.
On May 29, Walz criticized the “abject failure” of the city’s response. He ordered a full mobilization of the Guard Calm returned on May 30, but not before more than 1,500 businesses and buildings were damaged, with estimated losses approaching $500 million.
The Republican-controlled Minnesota Senate hearings held that july. The final report in October 2020, blamed the failure of executive leadership at the state and local levels and the reluctance of the Democratic governor and city leaders to confront their ideological allies.
“Governor Walz, his administration, and Mayor Frey failed to appreciate the seriousness of the riots and the danger to Minnesotans if rioters were not confronted and stopped,” the Senate GOP report said. “Both Governor Walz and Mayor Frey failed to act in a timely manner to confront rioters with the necessary force because of a poorly thought-out philosophical belief that such action would only exacerbate the riots.”
Impartial reviews also found problems with response rates.
A report by the non-profit organization Wilder Research, by order of the state, cited a lack of clear leadership early in. The report said the state was late in setting up a multi-agency command center, four days after Floyd was killed. It also said the National Guard was mobilized too late.
A separate aftercare report commissioned by the city Minneapolis officials said they were unfamiliar with the process for requesting National Guard assistance, delaying the approval and deployment of troops.
Walz, meanwhile, said he and other officials were doing their best.
“Sitting on the sidelines and criticizing is not what being governor is about. It’s making the tough decisions in the moment,” Walz said. during a gubernatorial debate in 2022. He said the way local, state and federal authorities worked together should serve as an example. “I’m proud of Minnesota’s response.”
During recent appearances in Minnesota, Donald Trump falsely claimed that he was personally responsible, when he was president, for deploying the Guard. In fact, it was Walz who gave the orders.
“Every voter in Minnesota needs to know that when the violent hordes of anarchists, looters and Marxists came to burn down Minneapolis four years ago — remember? — I could not get your governor to act,” Trump, the Republican presidential nominee, said in July. “He should have called in the National Guard or the military. And he didn’t.”
That stands in stark contrast to the praise Trump heaped on Walz in 2020, once the dust had settled from the crisis. Two days after Walz ordered the full mobilization, the then-president told governors and administration officials that the Minnesota chief executive had done a fantastic job.
“What they did in Minneapolis was unbelievable. They went in and dominated, and it happened right away,” Trump said, according to a audio recording of the conference call. The audio shows that Trump did not criticize the governor at the time. “Tim, you were calling out big numbers and the big numbers knocked them down so fast, it was like bowling pins,” Trump said.
Two independent third-party investigations, published in March 2022, found shortcomings in the city and state’s responses.
In the months following the riots, Walz urged to sweep changes and signed accountability packages for the police in 2020, 2021 and 2023.
Michelle Gross, president of Communities United Against Police Brutality, said Walz was largely unreceptive to policies that would have led to more meaningful improvements. She pointed to stalled efforts to end a legal doctrine known as qualified immunity, which shields police officers from liability for misconduct, and another proposal to extend the statute of limitations for wrongful deaths by police.
Political allies defended his push for change.
The state’s Attorney General Keith Ellison, who sentenced the four officers charged in Floyd’s death, said Walz found himself in an “impossible situation” in the summer of 2020. Still, Ellison said, the governor balanced the concerns of a grieving city with threats to public safety.
“Someone’s loved one is killed by the police, and you can’t save that person because death is final,” Ellison said. “The best thing you can do is hold (the police) accountable.”
Ben Crump, the influential civil rights lawyer who represented Floyd’s family, praised Walz as a “concerned and compassionate leader” for a grieving community.
“All leaders who are bold enough to actually lead are scrutinized and criticized. Some feel they’ve gone too far and some feel they haven’t gone far enough,” Crump said. “That’s usually an indication that they’ve found a necessary middle ground.”