Gwen Walz, the First Lady of Minnesota and wife of Vice President Kamala Harris’ running mate Tim Walz had some strong words for Republican vice presidential nominee Senator JD Vance of Ohio during her first solo campaign event in Virginia on Friday.
At the “Educators for Harris-Walz” event, Gwen Walz addressed comments made by Vance, who recently expressed concern about teachers who don’t have biological children. Walz didn’t hold back, sharing her own personal experience with infertility and fertility treatments.
“For a long time, Tim and I were teachers who struggled with infertility, and we were only able to start a family because of fertility treatments,” Walz said.
“This is really personal for me, and I think it is for millions of Americans. We do not take kindly to folks like JD Vance telling us when or how to start our families.”
Walz then delivered a message to Vance in what she called her “teacher voice”: “Mr. Vance, how about you mind your own business?” Her words were met with cheers and applause from the room full of educators, who joined her in repeating the phrase: “Mr. Vance, how about you mind your own business.”
Walz’s remarks came after Vance accused his Democratic rival of lying about using in vitro fertilization (IVF) to conceive their two children, Hope and Gus. Vance’s claim was in response to an article in Glamour magazine, which revealed that the conception was actually through intrauterine insemination (IUI), not IVF.
Gwen Walz, in the Glamour article, detailed how a neighbor who was a nurse helped her administer the necessary shots as part of the IUI process. “She would give me the shots to ensure we stayed on track,” Walz explained.
In her speeches, Kamala Harris has also been vocal about women’s rights, including access to birth control, abortion medication, and fertility treatments. She has criticized former President Donald Trump’s stance on abortion, framing Republicans as a threat to women’s reproductive rights.
Trump, however, recently stated that he would require the government or insurance companies to pay for IVF treatments if re-elected, a move likely aimed at appealing to women and suburban voters.
“[He] strongly supports ensuring women have access to the care they need to create healthy families, including widespread access to IVF, birth control, and contraception, and he always will.”
said Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt.
Gwen Walz’s pointed remarks have certainly sparked conversation, highlighting the deeply personal nature of the issues at hand for many Americans.