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The Daily Show host Michael Kosta has mocked Republicans over their new nickname for Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz after they started calling him “Tampon Tim.”
Last year, Minnesota Governor Walz signed a bill into law mandating that free sanitary products must be available to all menstruating students in restrooms used by students in grades 4 to 12 across Minnesota schools.
Coming into effect on 1 January, the bill ensures that young girls, non-binary and trans students all have access to the simple but essential products.
Since Walz was unveiled as Kamala Harris’s chosen running mate on Tuesday, Republicans have jumped to criticize him over the bill.
Appearing to miss the fact that the bill is for schoolchildren, conservative political commentator Liz Wheeler took to X to post an image of a box of tampons with Walz’s face photoshopped onto it. “He put tampons in men’s bathrooms. What a creep,” she falsely claimed.
Donald Trump’s former presidential advisor Stephen Miller also chimed in: “She actually chose Tampon Tim.”
Similarly, Trump campaign spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt hit out at Walz on Fox News claiming “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.”
On Wednesday’s late-night show, Kosta was quick to point out the childishness of the moniker saying: “Tampon Tim, that sounds like a fictional character parents tell their daughter about when she gets her first period.”
“Like, look what Tampon Tim left under the sink honey – super plus overnights!” he continued. “You’ve got your mom’s flow and we couldn’t be prouder.”
Kosta continued his bombardment, arguing the pointlessness of the Republican fury.
“With all due respect to Tampon Tim, I really just don’t care about this. Best case scenario, a trans kid gets tampons. Worst case, the weird kid in class puts them up his nose and pretends to be a walrus,” he joked as his audience erupted into laughter. “Which is also best case scenario!”
He added: “It doesn’t matter what you put in that bathroom. Whatever it is, they’re going to draw a penis on it - they’re going to rip it off the wall and try to flush it down the toilet.”
Kosta said that Republicans were scrambling to find something to use against Walz, as the “new energy” he brings to the Harris presidential campaign is “great for Democrats and terrible for Republicans.”
“Tim Walz creates excitement because he’s a new main character,” he said. “It’s like when you’ve had the same mailman for 20 years and then a new guy comes around and you’re like, ‘You know, this time I’m going to learn this guy’s name.’”
After weeks of speculation, Harris announced Walz as her running mate on Tuesday and the running mates have been holding a string of campaign events ever since.
