An heartfelt exchange between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has sparked a wave of admiration and support, but it has also provoked ugly bullying attacks on the internet.
An heartfelt exchange between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has sparked a wave of admiration and support, but it has also provoked ugly bullying attacks on the internet.
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An emotional moment between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has triggered a flood of admiration and support, but it has also led to ugly incidents of bullying online.
Gus Walz, who has a nonverbal learning disorder, as well as anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), looked on eagerly from the front row of Chicago’s United Center and sobbed openly on Wednesday night as his father, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, delivered his speech of acceptance at the Democratic National Convention.
The governor of Minnesota, was sharing the challenging fertility journey he and his wife, Gwen, underwent to conceive their daughter, Hope.
Walz continued by declaring his love for his loved ones from the stage, saying, "Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you are my entire world. And I love you."
Gus Walz jumped up from his seat, with teardrops running down his cheeks, pointed his index finger and said, “I love you, Dad.”
The touching exchange between father and son, captured on live TV by television cameras, quickly went viral and has largely been received positively on the web and in the media.
Fox News shared a video of the touching moment on its TikTok page, writing "Gus Walz steals the spotlight during dad's acceptance speech." The comments were mostly positive.
“I hope to inspire my kids so much that when they see me speak about the dreams and passion I hold for my country, they are moved to tears like Gus Walz did,” wrote Chasten Buttigieg, husband of Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, on X.
“@Tim_Walz has devoted his life to service and has clearly excelled in being an outstanding, supportive, and loving father every step of the way, ” he stated. “We should all be so lucky to know a love like that.”
U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who addressed the audience before Walz on Wednesday night, praised the love between Walz and his children.
More: Who is Gus Walz and what is a non-verbal learning disorder?
“You know you’ve succeeded as a parent when your kids are as proud of you as Gus and Hope are of Tim Walz,” she posted on X. “'That’s my dad.' No three words better capture our next Vice President. ”
Actress Mia Farrow also commented: “Gosh! When young Gus Walz, cherished son of Gwen and Tim Walz, his face streaming with tears of pride, exclaimed 'That’s my dad!' he won my heart. ”
Critics ridicule Gus Walz as a 'puffy beta male'
But the display of affection provoked a wave of snarky and nasty comments from internet trolls, primarily MAGA supporters of former president Donald Trump, who faces Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris and Walz in November.
Conservative columnist and provocateur Ann Coulter ridiculed the teenager’s tears. “Talk about weird, ” she posted on X. The message has since been deleted.
Mike Crispi, a Trump backer and podcaster from New Jersey, criticized Walz’s “stupid crying son” on X and wrote, “You raised your kid to be a blubbering beta male. Congrats.”
Alec Lace, a Trump supporter who runs a podcast about fatherhood, took his own swipe at the teenager: “Give that kid a tampon already,” he wrote, in an apparent jab to a Minnesota law that Walz signed as governor requiring educational institutions to offer free menstrual products to students.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Jay Weber, a conservative radio host in Milwaukee, made a post on X criticizing the Walz family, now removed.
"If the Walzs represent today's American man,
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