Donald Trump has doubled down on his criticism of Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, despite backlash for using a mental health slur.
The president levied an ableist insult at Walz on Thanksgiving, in a Truth Social post which attracted widespread criticism.
But Trump showed no sign of backing down when asked whether he stood by the use of the term, during questions from reporters on Air Force One.
“Yeah, I think there’s something wrong with him,” Trump responded. “Absolutely. Sure. You have a problem with it? You know what? I think there’s something wrong with him.
“Anybody that would do what he did, anybody that would allow those people into his state and pay billions of dollars out to Somalia– We give billions of dollars to Somalia. It’s not even a country because it doesn’t function like a country. It’s got a name but it doesn’t function like a country.”
The bulk of Trump’s original post was directed at the “Great American Citizens and Patriots who have been so nice in allowing our Country to be divided, disrupted, carved up, murdered, beaten, mugged, and laughed at, along with certain other foolish countries throughout the World, for being ‘Politically Correct,’ and just plain STUPID, when it comes to Immigration.”
He used the mental health slur against Walz, who was Kamala Harris’ running mate in the 2024 election, while attacking the Democratic governor for having a large Somali population in his state.
Walz hit back by posting a screenshot of the insult, which he captioned, “Release the MRI results.”
The Minnesota Governor again pushed back on Trump’s insult again on Meet the Press, where he said that he felt, as a teacher and a parent, the president’s language was “damaging.”
“He’s normalized this type of hateful behavior and this type of language,” Walz added. “And mainly, look, at first, I think it’s just because he’s not a good human being, but secondly to distract from using competency.”
Walz has been a campaigner for greater support for Americans with disabilities, being the parent to a son with nonverbal learning disorder, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder, and anxiety disorder.
Meanwhile, a Republican state legislator in Indiana announced that he would move against Trump’s efforts to redraw the state’s congressional district lines, on the basis of the slur being used.
Announcing his opposition to Trump’s gerrymandering scheme, Senator Mike Bohacek demanded that the president prove that “his policies and behavior deserve a congressional majority.”
“I have been an unapologetic advocate for people with intellectual disabilities since the birth of my second daughter,” Bohacek wrote on Facebook. “Those of you that don’t know me or my family might not know that my daughter has Down Syndrome.
“This is not the first time our president has used these insulting and derogatory references and his choices of words have consequences.”
The Independent has contacted the White House for comment.
