Viral Moment | mybabe22 | Mike Crispi

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

Gus Walz, who suffers from a Free Menstrual Products nonverbal learning disability, along with anxiety and ADHD, watched excitedly from the front row of Chicago’s United Center and cried openly on Wednesday night as his father, the Democratic vice-presidential nominee, delivered his acceptance speech at the Democratic National Convention.

The Minnesota governor was recounting the challenging fertility Hope Walz journey he and his wife, Gwen, went through to have their daughter, Hope.

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

Gus Walz rose from his seat, with teardrops running Nonverbal Learning Disorder 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 spread online and has largely been received positively on the internet and in the media.

Fox News shared a clip Minnesota Governor of the viral moment on its TikTok page, writing "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 hold for my country, they are moved Tim Walz 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 throughout his life, ” he wrote. “We should all be so lucky to know a Jay Weber 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 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, adorable son of Gwen and Tim Walz, his face covered in tears of pride, exclaimed 'That’s Viral Video my dad!' he stole my heart. ”

Critics dismiss Gus Walz as a 'puffy beta male'
But the display of affection triggered a series of sarcastic and nasty comments from online trolls, primarily MAGA supporters of former President Donald Trump, who is running against Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris Kamala Harris and Walz in November.

Conservative columnist and provocative commentator Ann Coulter mocked the teenager’s tears. “Talk about weird, ” she wrote on X. The post has since been deleted.

Mike Crispi, a Trump supporter and podcaster from New Jersey, mocked Walz’s “stupid crying son” on X and wrote, “You Self-advocacy raised your son to be a puffy beta male. Congrats.”

Alec Lace, a Trump supporter who runs a show about fatherhood, took his own swipe at the teenager: “Get that kid a tampon already,” he said, in an apparent jab to a Minnesota state law that Cyberbullying Walz passed as governor requiring schools to offer free menstrual products to students.
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel reported that Jay Weber, a conservative Milwaukee radio host, posted a message on X criticizing the Walz family. now deleted.

"If the Walzs represent today's American man,