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The heartfelt exchange between Tim Walz and his 17-year-old son, Gus, has sparked a wave of praise and support, but it has also led to ugly incidents of bullying online.

Gus Walz, who has Tim Walz 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 cried openly on Wednesday night as his father, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, gave his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.

The Minnesota governor Kamala Harris was recounting the difficult fertility treatment he and his wife, Gwen, underwent to conceive their daughter, Hope.

Walz followed up by declaring his love for his loved ones from the stage, saying, "Hope, Gus, and Gwen, you mean everything to me. And I love you."

Gus Walz jumped up from his Fox News seat, with teardrops streaming down his cheeks, pointed his finger and said, “I love you, Dad.”

The touching exchange between father and son, captured live by television cameras, quickly spread online and was mostly received adoringly on the internet and across media outlets.

Fox News posted Minnesota Governor a video of the touching moment on its TikTok account, stating "Gus Walz steals the spotlight during dad's acceptance speech." The comments were overwhelmingly positive.

“I hope to inspire my children so much that when they see me speak about the dreams and passion I have for my country, Social Media Criticism 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 succeeded in being an excellent, supportive, and caring father every step of the way, ” he wrote. “We should all be so Hope Walz fortunate 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 Acceptance Speech you as Gus and Hope are of Tim Walz,” she wrote on X. “'That’s my dad.' No three words better describe 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, exclaimed Emotional Moment 'That’s my dad!' he stole my heart. ”

Critics ridicule Gus Walz as a 'puffy beta male'
But the display of affection triggered a wave of sarcastic and cruel comments from internet trolls, primarily MAGA supporters of former President Donald Trump, who faces Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris

and Walz in November.

Conservative columnist and provocateur Ann Coulter mocked the teenager’s tears. “Now that's weird, ” she posted on X. The post has since been deleted.

Mike Crispi, a Trump backer and content creator from New Jersey, criticized Walz’s “stupid crying son” on X and wrote, “You Gus Walz raised your kid to be a blubbering beta male. Congrats.”

Alec Lace, a Trump follower who hosts a podcast about fatherhood, took his own shot at the teenager: “Get that kid a tampon already,” he said, in an apparent reference to a Minnesota state law that Gwen Walz Walz passed as governor requiring educational institutions to provide complimentary menstrual products to students.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel mentioned that Jay Weber, a conservative radio host in Milwaukee, posted a message on X criticizing the Walz family. now deleted.

"If the Walz(sic) represent today's American man,