Kamala Harris Says Picking Tim Walz as Running Mate over Other Strong Candidates Came Down to a 'Gut Decision'

Vice President Kamala Harris stands by her unexpected decision to pick Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate in a moment of pressure.

Speaking with MSNBC's Stephanie Ruhle on Wednesday, Sept. 25, during a special edition of All In with Chris Hayes, the Democratic presidential nominee was asked about the last time she had to make a gut decision, given that presidents are continually forced to trust their instincts on the job.

"The biggest gut decision I made most recently was to choose my running mate,” Harris replied. "There were lots of good, incredible candidates, and ultimately that came down to a gut decision."

Walz, who was named Harris' running mate on Aug. 6, was relatively unknown on the national stage when Harris entered the presidential race in late July. At the time, political strategists predicted that names like Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro, Arizona Sen. Mark Kelly and Kentucky Gov. Andy Beshear would rise to the top of the pack as Harris considered her ideal vice president.

While each of those people, and several others, were on Harris' shortlist, Walz emerged as a last-minute finalist after a series of TV appearances and viral social media moments revealed him to be an astute spokesperson for her platform.

In the end it came down to Walz and the more buttoned-up Shapiro. Harris chose Walz.

Elsewhere in Harris' Wednesday conversation with Ruhle, the vice president spent a significant amount of time discussing the economy and her goals to support first-time home-buyers, help entrepreneurs start small businesses and offer more credits to working families.

While speaking on her economic viewpoint, Harris criticized Donald Trump's plan to raise tariffs on imported goods across the board if elected, saying it would essentially amount to a "new national sales tax" by creating a ripple effect that could heighten inflation.

Economists have largely agreed, suggesting that it would hurt world trade and raise prices, as The New York Times previously explained and Goldman Sachs echoed.

Harris instead asserted that she would make corporations "pay their fair share" in order to better support the middle-class.

"I have spent a lot of time with CEOs and I'm going to tell you that the business leaders who are actually part of the engine of America's economy agree that people should pay their fair share," she said. "They also agree that when we look at a plan such as mine that is about investing in the middle-class, investing in new industries, investing in bringing down costs, investing in entrepreneurs like small businesses, that the overall economy is stronger and everyone benefits."

Harris' MSNBC interview marked her first solo network sit-down since accepting the Democratic presidential nomination in August. It came as critics accused her of dodging one-on-one conversations with journalists and instead prioritizing an ambitious campaign travel schedule.

She and Walz previously sat down with CNN's Dana Bash for a joint interview on Thursday, Aug. 29, where the vice president contended that her "values have not changed" when asked why some of her stances on issues like fracking have morphed over time.

"My values have not changed. So that is the reality of it," she told Bash. "And four years of being vice president, I’ll tell you, one of the aspects, to your point, is traveling the country extensively."

During an abbreviated campaign cycle after her late entry into the presidential race, Harris has spent a significant amount of time on the road rallying enthusiasm in battleground states and familiarizing voters with her platform.

In the process she has clarified her position on the Second Amendment ("I'm a gun owner, Tim Walz is a gun owner"), vowed to restore the abortion protections once afforded by Roe v. Wade ("Donald Trump is the architect of this crisis"), and argued to Trump that she would be more respected on foreign policy matters than him ("So many military leaders that you have worked with have told me that you are a disgrace").

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Since assuming her position at the top of the Democratic ticket in President Joe Biden's place, Harris has given Democrats a noteworthy boost in nationwide polling and — according to NBC News — the vice president saw the largest surge in favorability ratings, up 16 points, since President George W. Bush after the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

Despite her upward trajectory the presidential race appears to remain in a dead heat, with pollsters suggesting that Trump only narrowly trails Harris. In the 2016 and 2020 elections, Trump wildly outperformed poll predictions.