Overview
- Hope Walz posted, then deleted, a TikTok saying the president’s remark unleashed a torrent of abuse directed at her family, especially her brother Gus.
- She described people driving by the family home yelling the R-word and said she has received “horrendous” direct messages since the comment.
- Trump called Gov. Tim Walz “seriously retarded” in a late November Truth Social post attacking Minnesota’s handling of Somali immigration and crime.
- Gus Walz has a nonverbal learning disorder, and the family says he has previously been targeted with ableist insults that have recently resurged.
- Trump has defended his language while tying his criticism to reporting on a fraud scheme prosecutors say stole more than $1 billion, as Tim Walz has condemned the slur as cruel and damaging.