Watching his dad accept the Democratic nomination to run for vice president last year was “surreal” for Gus Walz.
“It was super overwhelming because, to me, he’s just regular old dad,” Gus, 18, said in a “CBS Mornings” interview aired Monday.
Gus spoke for the first time since last year’s Democratic National Convention in Chicago when he became emotional as Gov. Tim Walz spoke to the crowd. While much of the world — including the governor — was touched when Gus yelled, “That’s my dad!” and pointed to Walz onstage, parts of the internet responded with derision.
Gus told CBS he “blocked it out.”
“I was just being emotional,” he said. “There’s nothing wrong with showing emotions, and if people are going to say there’s something wrong with that, then those are not the people that I want to be associated with.”
At a news conference at the Capitol later Monday morning, Gov. Walz said it was an emotional morning for the family.
“I’m really proud of him. … I think it takes a lot of courage to do that, and both Gwen and I are just proud,” Walz said.
Last August, the Walz family opened up to People magazine about Gus’ nonverbal learning disorder. The Walzes said they noticed that Gus was different from his classmates and preferred to spend time alone.
