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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The heartfelt exchange between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has sparked a wave of praise and support, but it has also led to ugly incidents of bullying on the internet.
Gus Walz, who has a nonverbal learning disability, as well as anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), watched excitedly from the front seat of Chicago’s United Center and sobbed openly on Wednesday night as his father, the Democratic candidate for vice president, delivered his speech of acceptance at the Democratic National Convention.
The governor of Minnesota, was recounting the difficult fertility treatment he and his wife, Gwen, went through to conceive their daughter, Hope.
Walz continued by declaring his love for his loved ones from the stage, stating, "Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you are my entire world. And I love you."
Gus Walz rose from his seat, with tears running down his cheeks, pointed his finger and said, “I love you, Dad.”
The heartwarming moment between father and son, captured on live TV by TV cameras, quickly went viral and was mostly received adoringly on the web and in the media.
Fox News posted a clip of the viral moment on its TikTok account, stating "Gus Walz steals the show during dad's acceptance speech." The comments were mostly positive.
“I hope to inspire my kids so much that when they see me give a speech about the dreams and passion I hold for my country, they are moved to tears like Gus Walz did,” posted Chasten Buttigieg, husband of Transportation Secretary on X.
“@Tim_Walz has dedicated his life to service and has clearly excelled in being an outstanding, supportive, and loving father throughout his life, ” he wrote. “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, commended 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 wrote on X. “'That's my dad.' No three words better capture our future vice president. ”
Actress Mia Farrow added: “Gosh! When sweet Gus Walz, cherished son of Gwen and Tim Walz, his face covered in tears of pride, shouted 'That’s my dad!' he won my heart. ”
Critics ridicule Gus Walz as a 'puffy beta male'
But the display of affection triggered a series of snarky and cruel comments from online trolls, primarily supporters of MAGA, of former President Donald Trump, who faces Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and Walz in November.
Conservative columnist and provocative commentator Ann Coulter ridiculed the teenager’s tears. “Talk about weird, ” she wrote on X. The post has since been deleted.
Mike Crispi, a Trump supporter and content creator from New Jersey, criticized Walz’s “stupid crying son” on X and wrote, “You raised your son to be a blubbering beta male. Congrats.”
Alec Lace, a Trump supporter who runs a show about fatherhood, took his own swipe at the teenager: “Give that kid a tampon already,” he said, in an apparent reference to a Minnesota state law that Walz signed as governor requiring schools to provide complimentary menstrual products to students.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Jay Weber, a conservative Milwaukee radio host, made a post on X criticizing the Walz family, now removed.
"If the Walz(sic) represent today's American man,
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