Tim Walz in 2022 MN Governor's race

On Abortion: Abortion is on the ballot with my anti-choice opponent

Walz stressed that governors can appoint Minnesota Supreme Court justices who interpret cases. "I just want to be absolutely clear, this is on the ballot," Walz said.

On Government Reform: State investments come back to you tenfold over

"You get a choice here of a vision of Minnesota, one that questions our elections, one that tells women they can't make their choices, one that defunds our public schools or you get an opportunity that brought so many of us to Minnesota. An opportunity for a state that is inclusive," Walz said.

On Abortion: Codified abortion rights while surrounded by pro-life states

Minnesota, surrounded by anti-abortion states, is a refuge in the Upper Midwest for reproductive health care. Reproductive rights groups are planning a constitutional amendment to enshrine abortion rights in the state constitution.

"This incredible progress starkly contrasts with what happened in surrounding states, where politicians banned abortions and gender-affirming care, attacked drag shows, and invested more tax dollars into deceptive anti-abortion crisis pregnancy centers," read a statement by Minnesota Planned Parenthood.

On Budget & Economy: Invest budget surplus in things that make Minnesota strong

[GOP opponent] Jensen countered that the surplus is a result of overtaxing citizens. He proposes eliminating the tax on Social Security, cutting fraud and abuse and weighing a cut to the state income tax.

Walz countered that cutting the state's income tax could lead to cuts to funding for education, programs that assist needy families, public safety. "Minnesota's economy is stronger in the upper Midwest and we can continue to be there," Walz said.

Jensen said this is an "opportune moment" in the state's history to consider an income tax cut.

On Corporations: A place for both large corporate farms and family farms

Walz went after Jensen as well, accusing him of seeing only negative statistics and neglecting the positive numbers. "If you're rooting against Minnesota being at the top, having the strongest state finances and the lowest unemployment … if you're rooting to see failure, that's what you're going to get," Walz said. "But it's not the job we're applying for."

Walz blamed Jensen's no-new-spending rhetoric for the failure of the budget and tax compromise at the Legislature and noted that tax cuts and spending on public schools and public safety were victims of the impasse.

On Crime: OpEd:riot response criticized as too weak AND too aggressive

[Gubernatorial opponent] former Senate Republican leader Paul Gazelka called Walz weak and hesitant when dealing with lawlessness and rising crime. [Gubernatorial opponent] former Sen. Scott Jensen, too, faulted the incumbent. "I think that he was slow to act at times, trying to check out what the political winds were telling us," Jensen said. "I think that was particularly crucial during the riots and the violence in late May and early June of 2020."

At the same time, Walz has faced criticism from the political left for what some saw as overly aggressive tactics used by the National Guard and other law enforcement agencies to respond to rioting.

On Education: Free breakfast and lunch at school

On Education: Vision of inclusivity, vs. defunding our schools

Jensen highlighted lagging student test scores, rising violent crime and inflation during Walz's tenure. "We need to start funding kids, not broken institutions," said Jensen, who is pushing for student choice, where dollars would follow students to private, charter or public schools. He also condemned closures of schools during the pandemic, saying, "These kids are going to be paying the price of Tim Walz's irresponsible policy decisions for years to come."

On Families & Children: Ban conversion therapy; don't ban books

On Government Reform: Restore voting rights for formerly incarcerated people

On Gun Control: Establish red flag law; expand background checks

On Health Care: COVID: followed the science, on public health measures

A Rochester physician and DFL activist [summarized] that the COVID-19 pandemic was the most profound health care crisis the country has faced in a century, and Gov. Walz and his team provided "leadership in uncertain times": "The governor made tough but necessary choices to limit the spread of the disease. We will never know who didn't die because of the Walz administration's efforts--whose parent or whose child (didn't die). That is the challenge of public health."

DFL supporters contrasted Walz's record with the comments by Jensen, who has compared public health measures to limit the spread of the disease as akin to Kristallnacht, when Nazis in Germany torched synagogues and vandalized Jewish homes.

On Jobs: Paid leave and paid sick days

Governor Walz has invested millions in workforce development to connect Minnesotans to high-growth, high-demand career fields like manufacturing, education, and public safety. To lower costs and grow Minnesota's workforce, Governor Walz and Lieutenant Governor Flanagan provided free college for students with a family income under $80,000. They also invested over $1 billion in child care and early learning opportunities.

On Jobs: Minnesota Miracle: expanding workers' rights

The new legislature wasted no time passing laws expanding workers' rights, reproductive rights, voting rights, gun safety, clean energy, and the social safety net. The "Minnesota Miracle" [included] nearly every item of the Minnesota AFL-CIO agenda.

For nearly a decade, Minnesotans for Paid Family Medical Leave fought for the landmark legislation that grants up to 12 weeks of paid family and medical leave. The legislature passed other bills to massively expand labor rights, including protections against wage theft, and an expansion of public sector collective bargaining.

The laws also boost possibilities for union organizing. A stronger labor movement, allied with the DFL, can defend and grow legislative majorities.

On Social Security: Regulate assisted-living centers for elder abuse

On Welfare & Poverty: $1 billion investment in affordable housing

CUTTING CHILD POVERTY: Governor Walz and Lieutenant Governor Flanagan established a nation-leading child tax credit to cut child poverty in Minnesota by up to one-third.

On Welfare & Poverty: Feeding our Future scandal: an unacceptable scam

Jensen and other critics have questioned whether the Walz administration should have known sooner and moved faster to stop the scam. "Over and over again, we have seen a culture of waste, fraud, abuse and cost overruns swept under the rug," Jensen said.

Walz called the loss of federal money in the scam unacceptable. "We'll get the answers when we get the investigation done," Walz said, noting that some of those charged have already pleaded guilty.