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Bob Dylan is known for his cryptic songwriting, and one of his most straightforward yet puzzling lines is from “Absolutely Sweet Marie” off Blonde on Blonde: “To live outside the law, you must be honest.”
For those unfamiliar with the legendary Robert Allen Zimmerman from Duluth, Minnesota, this lyric tends to be seen as a profound statement on the ethos of the 1960s underground, with fans interpreting it as a face-value rephrasing of “honor among thieves.” But is it that simple?
Given Dylan’s famously inscrutable nature, this line feels just as enigmatic as anything else he’s written. If the narrator were truly honest, the statement would be meaningful. But, consider the paradox: isn’t this exactly what someone living outside the law might say to convince you they’re trustworthy, even when they’re not?
I bring up Dylan’s lyric for a reason: after almost two years of this presidential campaign, I’d rather be listening to Blonde on Blonde than enduring the latest round of dubious soundbites from Democrats. Enter Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, who recently provided his own version of “to live outside the law, you must be honest.”
On Friday, Walz posted on X: “All Donald Trump and JD Vance know about manufacturing is how to manufacture bulls***.”
All Donald Trump and JD Vance know about manufacturing is how to manufacture bullshit.
— Tim Walz (@Tim_Walz) October 11, 2024
Apparently, the party that once told blue-collar workers to “learn to code” now wants us to believe that Trump and Vance, both of whom have pushed to bring back American manufacturing, are actually the ones lying. Meanwhile, Walz, who can barely go a few hours without tripping over a new falsehood, accuses others of dishonesty.
One can almost imagine this being sung in a Dylan-esque croon:
“To post about your opponents manufacturing bulls***, you must manufacture bulls*** / The couch-stained jokes, they do repugnantly lie there…”
While my rhyme needs work, Walz has bigger problems. His lack of vetting by the national media means that the public is just now getting a glimpse of his history. And as Walz positions himself alongside Kamala Harris in the Democratic campaign, voters are starting to see the troubling pattern of dishonesty that has plagued his political career.
Whether it’s lies about his military service, fabrications surrounding the George Floyd riots, or the infamous Tiananmen Square remarks, Walz’s record is littered with deception. Yet he continues to level baseless accusations at his opponents.
So when Walz takes to social media to attack Trump and Vance for allegedly “manufacturing bulls***,” his own history of dishonesty becomes impossible to ignore. As Dylan might suggest, to live outside the truth, perhaps, you must first become “very vulgar.” Or in Walz’s case, just “weird.”
