You’re missing the point. He did those things and isn’t a complete and utter tool as a result. They aren’t his identity or opportunities to “be manly.” They were acts of service.
Think of it this way: if someone wanted you to meet their 60 year white American man friend who served 2 decades in the military and coached high school football, would your immediate assumption be you’re about to meet someone like Walz? Most of us have a lot of bad assumptions about that person out the gate before meeting them.
Then it turns out they actually have a pretty progressive record as a governor. Look at his record, not the stereotypes of where he came from. That’s the point.