An heartfelt exchange between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has sparked a flood of admiration and support, but it has at the same time provoked ugly bullying attacks on the internet.
An heartfelt exchange between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has sparked a flood of admiration and support, but it has at the same time provoked ugly bullying attacks on the internet.
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An heartfelt moment between Tim Walz and his teenage son, Gus, has triggered a wave of admiration and support, but it has also led to ugly incidents of bullying online.
Gus Walz, who has a nonverbal learning disorder, along with anxiety and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), watched excitedly from the front row of Chicago’s United Center and cried openly on Wednesday night as his father, the Democratic candidate for vice president, gave his speech of acceptance at the Democratic National Convention.
The governor of Minnesota, was sharing the challenging fertility journey he and his wife, Gwen, went through to conceive their daughter, Hope.
Walz followed up by declaring his love for his loved ones from the stage, stating, "Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you mean everything to me. And I love you."
Gus Walz jumped up from his seat, with teardrops running down his cheeks, pointed his finger and exclaimed, “I love you, Dad.”
The heartwarming exchange between father and son, captured live by TV cameras, quickly spread online and was mostly received adoringly on the web and in the media.
Fox News shared a clip of the viral moment on its TikTok page, stating "Gus Walz steals the spotlight during dad's acceptance speech." The comments were mostly positive.
“I hope to inspire my children 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,” wrote Chasten Buttigieg, husband of Transportation Secretary on X.
“@Tim_Walz has devoted his life to service and has clearly succeeded in being an excellent, supportive, and loving father every step of the way, ” he stated. “We should all be so fortunate to know a love like that.”
U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., who spoke before Walz on Wednesday night, commended the bond between Walz and his children.
More: Who is Gus Walz and what does having a non-verbal learning disorder mean?
“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 other words better capture our next Vice President. ”
Actress Mia Farrow added: “Gosh! When sweet Gus Walz, cherished son of Gwen and Tim Walz, his face streaming with tears of pride, shouted 'That’s my dad!' he stole my heart. ”
Critics dismiss Gus Walz as a 'puffy beta male'
But the display of affection provoked a series of snarky and cruel comments from online trolls, many of them supporters of MAGA, of former president Donald Trump, who faces Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and Walz in November.
Right-wing columnist and provocative commentator Ann Coulter mocked the teenager’s tears. “Now that's weird, ” she wrote on X. The message has since been deleted.
Mike Crispi, a Trump backer and content creator from New Jersey, mocked Walz’s “crybaby son” on X and wrote, “You raised your son to be a puffy beta male. Congrats.”
Alec Lace, a Trump follower who runs a show about fatherhood, took his own shot 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 provide free menstrual products to students.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel mentioned 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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