Gov. Tim Walz (D-MN) slammed President Donald Trump in a speech Saturday, condemning the president for the “genuine emergency” he has created.
Walz, the 2024 vice presidential nominee, told graduating law school students at the University of Minnesota that they are entering a dangerous world.
“Right now, more than any other time in my lifetime, we need you to live up to the oath that you’re about to make. Because, I have to be honest with you: You are graduating into a genuine emergency,” he told the students during their commencement ceremony. “Every single day, the president of the United States finds new ways to trample rights and undermine the rule of law.”
ADVERTISEMENT
Walz added that lawyers are the “first and last line of defense” against Trump, who he suggested was a dictator.
“This is what the crumbling of rule of law looks like in real time,” he said. “And it’s exactly what the founders of this nation feared: A tyrant, abusing power to persecute scapegoats and enemies.”
The president has spent the last several months cracking down on immigration and deporting migrants without due process. Most have been sent to an infamous mega prison in El Salvador known for its humanitarian violations.
Walz also warned applauding students of the “feckless” and “cowardly” major law firms that have bent the knee to Trump.
“It’s a flagrant betrayal of the oath they took as lawyers,” he said.
Walz is among the list of potential 2028 presidential candidates who are gaining traction in a party that is at record-low favorability ratings. Other contenders include New York Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, who has garnered attention after traveling around the country with Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders in their “Fighting Oligarchy” tour, and California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who has seemingly attempted to reach across the aisle toward conservative media personalities in his new podcast.
Pete Buttigieg, a former presidential candidate and Joe Biden’s transportation secretary, drew applause in an Iowa town hall when he denounced Trump.
Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker is also a potential nominee, and the Democrat insulted his own party for being “do-nothing” lawmakers who fail to oppose the president. Pritzker received accolades in February when he used part of his State of the State address to compare Trump’s administration to Nazi Germany.
