Tim Walz’s son goes viral with wholesome, emotional response to his dad's big speech
It was about so much more than politics.

People can't stop crying over Gus Walz's reaction to dad
There's something about seeing someone else overcome with emotions that makes people choke up. Seeing someone's pure joy, excitement or sadness is almost always a recipe for a moment of genuine human connection, whether it's watching someone graduate, the birth of a new baby or in this case, watching a proud son react to his father's speech.
Tim Walz, the Democratic Vice Presidential Candidate is seen giving a moving speech at the DNC where he and Presidential Candidate Kamala Harris are expected to accept their nomination. Walz was in attendance with his wife and children, who watched on as the vice presidential hopeful spoke about the difficulty he and his wife had conceiving children.
Walz explains to a packed venue that he and and wife had to undergo fertility treatments, "And I can remember praying each night for a phone call. The pit in your stomach when the phone would ring and the absolute agony when we heard the treatment hadn't worked."
The father of two says it took he and his wife years even though they had access to fertility treatments, sharing that when their daughter was born, they named her Hope. This revelation caused a visible reaction from his daughter who made a heart with her hands before placing one over her heart as she appeared to hold back tears.
Gus, Walz's 17-year-old son was overcome by emotions when his father says, "Hope, Gus and Gwen, you are my entire world and I love you." It was this moment that has taken the internet through an emotional journey of its own. The teen stood up with tears streaming as he clapped while shouting to anyone who could hear, "that's my dad! That's my dad!"
It's nearly impossible to look at this moment without the back of your eyes stinging from the emotions radiating from the screen. People on social media are also having a hard time controlling the tears as they watch his emotions overflow for the love and pride he clearly has in his father.
An account that goes by the name The Real Doubledeemuva uploaded the video with her commentary saying, "his son has a nonverbal learning disability and has anxiety and he was in a room full of people just to hear his daddy and as Tim was talking about his family saying how much he loved them and how they got their start due to fertility treatments. That baby stood up out of his chair and was pointing at his daddy and saying 'that's my daddy' and turned around to everybody saying 'that's my daddy.'"
@therealdoubledeemuva Tim Walz son Gus cries and says "that's my dad" as he Tim gives a phenomenal speech at the dnc #heyplayas #timwalz #kamalaharris #minnesota #dnc #Chicago #illinois ♬ Boundless Worship - Josué Novais Piano Worship
People in the comments also shared how emotional it was to see Gus react to his father's speech while several are ready to do everything in their power to protect the teen.
"Very emotional moment. The way his babies looked at their father in that light. I lost it! Love Gov. Walz," someone gushes.
"I'm a 52 year old black male from NJ, Gus had me ugly tearing nose running. The love," one commenter shares.
"When I tell you I was crying right along with Gus. America's Nephew now," another person cries.
For one commenter, the tears were a family affair, "this broke me and my husband both. We sat in the living room watching the love that child has for his dad. We were drowning in our own tears. If you didn't cry too, you don't have a heart."
The people have spoken, Gus Walz is now everyone's nephew and must be protected at all costs. It's the rule after you make nearly everyone on the internet collectively cry.
There's a reason why some people can perfectly copy accents, and others can't
Turns out, there's a neurodivergent link.
A woman in black long sleeve shirt stands in front of mirror.
Have you ever had that friend who goes on vacation for four days to London and comes back with a full-on Queen's English posh accent? "Oooh I left my brolly in the loo," they say, and you respond, "But you're from Colorado!" Well, there are reasons they (and many of us) do that, and usually it's on a pretty subconscious level.
It's called "accent mirroring," and it's actually quite common with people who are neurodivergent, particularly those with ADHD (Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder). According Neurolaunch, the self-described "Free Mental Health Library," "Accent mirroring, also known as accent adaptation or phonetic convergence, is the tendency to unconsciously adopt the accent or speech patterns of those around us. This linguistic chameleon effect is not unique to individuals with ADHD, but it appears to be more pronounced and frequent in this population."
Essentially, when people have conversations, we're constantly "scanning" for information—not just the words we're absorbing, but the inflection and tone. "When we hear an accent, our brains automatically analyze and categorize the phonetic features, prosody, and intonation patterns," writes Neurolaunch. For most, this does result in copying the accent of the person with whom we're speaking. But those with ADHD might be more sensitive to auditory cues. This, "coupled with a reduced ability to filter out or inhibit the impulse to mimic…could potentially explain the increased tendency for accent mirroring."
While the article explains further research is needed, they distinctly state that, "Accent mirroring in individuals with ADHD often manifests as an unconscious mimicry of accents in social situations. This can range from subtle shifts in pronunciation to more noticeable changes in intonation and speech rhythm. For example, a person with ADHD might find themselves unconsciously adopting a Southern drawl when conversing with someone from Texas, even if they’ve never lived in the South themselves."
People are having their say online. On the subreddit r/ADHDWomen, a thread began: "Taking on accents is an ADHD thing?" The OP shares, "My whole life, I've picked up accents. I, myself, never noticed, but everyone around me would be like, 'Why are you talking like that??' It could be after I watched a show or movie with an accent or after I've traveled somewhere with a different accent than my 'normal.'
They continue, "Apparently, I pick it up fast, but it fades out slowly. Today... I'm scrolling Instagram, I watch a reel from a comedian couple (Darcy and Jeremy. IYKYK) about how Darcy (ADHD) picks up accents everywhere they go. It's called ADHD Mirroring??? And it's another way of masking."
(The OP is referring to Darcy Michaels and his husband Jeremy Baer, who are both touring comedians based in Canada.)
Hundreds of people on the Reddit thread alone seem to relate. One comments, "Omfg I've done this my whole life; I'll even pick up on the pauses/spaces when I'm talking to someone who is ESL—but English is my first language lol."
Sometimes, it can be a real issue for those around the chameleon. "I accidentally mimicked a waitress's weird laugh one time. As soon as she was out of earshot, my family started to reprimand me, but I was already like 'oh my god I don’t know why I did that, I feel so bad.'"
Many commenters on TikTok were shocked to find out this can be a sign of ADHD. One jokes, "Omg, yes, at a store the cashier was talking to me and she was French. She's like 'Oh are you French too? No, I'm not lol. I'm very east coast Canada."
And some people just embrace it and make it work for them. "I mirror their words or phrase! I’m 30. I realized I start calling everyone sweetie cause my manager does & I work at coffee shop."
This article originally appeared in May.