by Dan Gilmore • 3 minutes
Presidential nominee Kamala Harris selected Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz as her running mate this week. A review of Walz’s record during his six years as governor shows that he faced multiple lawsuits accusing him of infringing on religious liberty, reports The Daily Signal.
During the pandemic, Walz imposed harsher restrictions on houses of worship than on businesses. In 2020, he issued an executive order allowing malls, shops and other retailers—from pet-grooming services to medical cannabis operations—to open at 50% capacity. Religious gatherings, however, were limited to no more than 10 people.
Houses of worship in Minnesota fought back against the discriminatory order. Walz initially agreed to allow religious gatherings to operate at 25% capacity. Two churches moved forward and filed a lawsuit to ensure religious groups were treated equally. Three other churches filed lawsuits backed by the Thomas More Society in August 2020, claiming Walz violated their religious rights by mandating things like masks, limited capacity, and social distancing. Walz lost in court in 2021 and agreed to allow churches to gather the same as “the least restricted secular business regulated by the order.”
In May 2023, Walz signed a bill that specifically excluded religious universities with statements of faith from a tremendously beneficial state program. Minnesota created a program nearly 40 years ago to encourage and enable high school juniors and seniors to earn college credit without having to take on additional debt. But Walz signed into law changes that wouldn’t allow religious schools to participate.
A group of Christian parents and schools filed a lawsuit asking a federal court to strike down this new discriminatory law. That case is still being fought in court.
Earlier this year, Walz signed a bill protecting religious freedom in Minnesota’s “Human Rights Act.” But there’s more to the story. Gov. Walz or his party were not the ones who advocated for those religious protections.
In fact, there was huge uproar and concern from diverse faith groups in Minnesota over the original version of the so-called “Human Rights Act,” which was introduced by members of the Governor’s party.
Minnesota lawmakers and many religious leaders sounded the alarm that the bill’s original language—which added “gender identity” as a protected class to state law—could create problems for religious organizations and houses of worship. There were concerns that the proposed legislation did not include enough protections for people of faith.
State lawmakers pushed to add language that explicitly protected religious freedom to ensure people of faith, houses of worship and religious organizations would not face discrimination.
After facing significant backlash, both the Minnesota House and Senate voted unanimously to restore religious protections. Walz signed the legislation back in May.
Even faith leaders who previously worked and met with Gov. Walz on religious freedom policies are expressing caution. “Tim Walz is no friend of religious liberty,” according to a statement from the Catholic League. “The hard line he took for houses of worship smacked of an anti-religious bias.”
After Harris announced Walz as her VP pick, the Minnesota Catholic Conference said in a press statement:
“We are proud to have worked together with him…Yet, we also have had areas of strong disagreement, including protecting the innocent unborn from abortion, the protection of children from the manifestations of gender ideology, and the importance of parental rights in education. In some areas, such as religious liberty, we have appreciated his willingness to hear our concerns and change course.”
Others echo similar concerns. “Walz’s Minnesota has become an oasis for left-wing radicals, pro-abortion Democrats, criminals, and illegal immigrants, while hard-working Americans and faithful Christians have been hung out to dry,” said Timothy Head, executive director at the Faith & Freedom Coalition. “He cannot be counted on to protect people of faith. In many ways, his policies and leadership are ruining Minnesota, and as Kamala Harris’ Vice President, he would do the same thing for our nation.”
Read More:
Daily Signal: How Tim Walz Took Aim at Churches, Other Faith-Based Groups
Life News: Tim Walz is No Friend of the Unborn or Religious Liberty
Washington Stand: Who Is Tim Walz, Kamala Harris’s VP Candidate?
Washington Stand: Conservatives React to ‘Radical’ Harris-Walz Ticket
Desert News: What Tim Walz has said about his faith
Catholic League: Walz’s Policies on Religion and Sexuality
The Lion: ‘Patently anti-religious’: Tim Walz has history of restricting faith-based institutions
The Federalist: Minnesota Human Rights Act Openly Attacked Religious Freedom
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