Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz was on stage to accept his party’s vice presidential nomination on the third night of the Democratic National Convention when attention turned to the crowd where his 17-year-old son stood up in tears, pointed at the stage and proudly declared, “That’s my dad! That’s my dad!”That’s my dad).
The emotional moment captivated viewers Wednesday night as Walz addressed Democrats as Vice President Kamala Harris’ official running mate. His son and daughter, Gus and Hope Walz, both cried as Walz recounted how he and his wife struggled to have children and how fertility treatments helped them conceive.
In vitro fertilization was put in jeopardy by a February ruling in Alabama that declared frozen embryos to be people and anyone who destroyed them could be held liable. The unprecedented decision has cast a shadow over in vitro fertilization treatments in the state and led some Republicans to distance themselves from the issue after facing backlash. Mr. Walz and his wife, Gwen Walz, have said their children were conceived through a fertility treatment called intrauterine insemination (IUI).
Although both in vitro fertilization (IVF) and IUI are treatments for infertility issues, Alabama’s decision to ban IVF would not ban IUI, said Naomi R. Cahn, who co-directs the Family Law Center at the University of Virginia and researches reproductive technologies. Alabama’s ban was on treatments involving embryos created outside the body, she added, while IUI is “an inside-the-body process.”
On Wednesday, Mr. Walz called their fertility fight “agony” and said protecting treatments like the ones they used is “a big part of what this election is about.”
PHOTO RICKY CARIOTI, THE WASHINGTON POST
Minnesota Governor and Democratic vice presidential candidate Tim Walz on Wednesday
“Hope, Gus and Gwen, you mean everything to me and I love you,” Mr. Walz said just before Gus stood up.
Hope, who was taking pictures of her father with a disposable camera during his speech, raised her hands in a heart shape.
Viral moment
Gus’ emotional reaction went viral in clips shared on social media with the hashtag #thatsmydad. For many viewers, it became the highlight of Mr. Walz’s speech.
“You know you’ve done a good job as a parent when your kids are as proud of you as Gus and Hope are of Tim Walz,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar wrote on X.
“Tim Walz was 100% perfect, a grand slam, a touchdown in every sense of the word,” Kate Bedingfield, former White House communications director for Joe Biden, wrote on X. “And yet Gus Walz was even better.”
In a statement to People This month, Walz and his wife explained that Gus, a high school senior, has a nonverbal learning disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and an anxiety disorder.
They told the magazine that, like many families, it took time to figure out “how to make sure we were doing everything we could to set Gus up for success as he grew up.”
They eventually realized that his troubles were “his secret power” and described Gus as “brilliant” and “a great son and brother,” they told the magazine.
Walz’s children have been a source of pride for him since he took public office. Last year, he posted a photo celebrating Hope’s graduation from Montana State University, and a few months later, he shared a viral video of their visit to the state fair.
Last fall, he shared a photo of himself and his son in a car when Gus took his driving test, writing, ” proud dad moment » (proud moment for a father).
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