By Valerie Richardson - The Washington Times - Wednesday, August 7, 2024

Republicans have tagged Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz with a less-than-flattering nickname.

“Tampon Tim” became the top trend Tuesday on X shortly after Vice President Kamala Harris announced Mr. Walz as her running mate, a reference to the bill he signed last year requiring schools to provide free menstrual products in student restrooms in grades 4-12.

“There is no universe where a man who gives tampons to teenage boys is going to be next in line to be president. #TamponTim,” said Stephen Miller on X. Mr. Miller served as a senior adviser to former President Donald Trump.

Make America Great Again Inc., a pro-Trump super PAC, promptly posted an ad that began with a scene of a boys’ restroom.

“Tim Walz is a weird radical liberal,” said the ad. “What could be weirder than signing a bill requiring schools to stock tampons in boys’ bathrooms?”

Mr. Walz was also criticized for signing an executive order last year protecting access to gender-transition drugs and surgeries for minors, a reaction to red state laws barring minors from accessing sex-change hormones and procedures.

Trump campaign spokesperson Karoline Leavitt said the governor’s positions represent a “threat” to women.

“As a woman, I think there is no greater threat to our health than leaders who support gender-transition surgeries for young minors, who support putting tampons in men’s bathrooms in public schools,” Ms. Leavitt said on Fox News. “Those are radical policies that Tim Walz supports.”

Former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton clapped back and praised the Minnesota law.

“How nice of the Trump camp to help publicize Gov. Tim Walz’s compassionate and common-sense policy of providing free menstrual products to students in Minnesota public schools! Let’s do this everywhere,” said Mrs. Clinton on X.

It turns out that 28 states and the District of Columbia provide free menstrual products to students at school, according to the Alliance for Period Supplies, but not all the laws extend to boys’ restrooms.

Not all boys are thrilled with the laws. In February, vandals ripped the tampon dispenser off the wall in a boys’ bathroom at Brookfield High School in Connecticut just 20 minutes after it was installed.

Minnesota Democrats rejected an amendment by Republican legislators to restrict the products to girls’ restrooms only, citing the needs of female students who identify as male and use boys’ facilities.

Democratic state Rep. Sandra Feist, the bill’s sponsor, said during the January 2023 committee debate that “not all students who menstruate are female. We need to make sure all students have access to these products.”

Those defending Mr. Walz included the left-wing watchdog Media Matters for America, which blasted the “bizarre attacks” without mentioning that the law includes boys’ as well as girls’ school restrooms.

“Right-wing figures are sharing memes attempting to brand the new Democratic vice presidential pick, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, as ‘Tampon Tim’ for signing a bill to provide menstrual products in public school bathrooms,” said Media Matters on its website. “This is the latest in a series of bizarre attacks that right-wing figures have launched at Walz.”

Paul Dupont, spokesperson for the American Principles Project, described “Tampon Tim” as a “pithy nickname that just scratches the surface of Walz’s radicalism on gender.”

“Kamala Harris and Democrats could not have picked a more extreme politician for vice president, and hopefully this nickname will help draw attention to that,” he said in an email.

Update: This story has been updated to reflect ongoing questions about the extent of the tampon access bill.

• Valerie Richardson can be reached at vrichardson@washingtontimes.com.

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