Mtp.Slur in the Heartland: Trump’s ‘Retarded’ Jab at Walz Ignites Fury, Countered by Sharp Retort on Presidential Fitness
The Guardian – November 30, 2025
MINNEAPOLIS – On a day meant for gratitude, President Donald Trump served up venom instead. In a sprawling Thanksgiving Truth Social screed that veered from policy rants to personal vitriol, Trump unleashed a slur-laced broadside against Minnesota Governor Tim Walz, branding him “seriously retarded” amid accusations of failed leadership on crime, schools, and immigration. The post, which has since been viewed over 12 million times, didn’t just cross a line—it bulldozed it, drawing swift condemnation from Democrats, disability advocates, and even some Republicans, while sparking a viral counterpunch from Walz that zeroed in on Trump’s own health records.
The incendiary language emerged in a post timestamped late Thursday night, hours after Trump addressed troops from Mar-a-Lago and confirmed the death of National Guardsman Sarah Beckstrom in a D.C. shooting. Tying the tragedy to his hardline immigration agenda, Trump vowed a “permanent pause” on migration from “Third World countries,” claiming such policies had flooded Minnesota with Somali refugees who were now “completely taking over” the state. “Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for ‘prey’ as our wonderful people stay locked in their apartments,” he wrote, before pivoting to Walz: “The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both.” He then took aim at Rep. Ilhan Omar, alleging she “probably came into the U.S.A. illegally” and was the “worst ‘Congressman/woman’ in our Country,” wrapped in her “swaddling hijab.”
The rhetoric, laced with debunked tropes about Minnesota’s Somali community—estimated at 61,300 people, or 1.1% of the population, per U.S. Census data—echoed Trump’s long-standing fixation on the state, a Democratic stronghold that handed him a surprise 2024 loss. Crime rates in Minneapolis, still scarred by the 2020 George Floyd unrest, have ticked up under Walz’s watch, with homicides rising 20% year-over-year, though experts attribute it to a national post-pandemic surge rather than immigration. Schools face chronic funding shortfalls, and urban decay in the Twin Cities persists, but Walz’s defenders point to his expansions in free school meals and mental health services as lifelines amid GOP obstruction.
The slur, however, overshadowed the substance. “Retarded,” a term long abandoned by medical professionals in favor of “intellectual disability,” was decried as a “disgusting relic” by Special Olympics Minnesota, whose CEO issued a statement Friday: “Using this word to demean a leader isn’t just cruel—it’s a betrayal of the dignity we fight for every day.” Former federal prosecutor Joseph Moreno, now a CNN contributor, called it “a new low, even for Trump,” arguing it “poisons public discourse and hurts real people.” On X, #TrumpSlur trended nationwide, with posts from users like @BLivefreeat5280 defending it as “truth about Walz’s failures,” while others, including actor James Woods, amplified the controversy by quoting state employee whistleblowers accusing Walz of fraud cover-ups. One viral thread from @Minnesota_DHS, representing over 480 state workers, blasted Walz as “dishonest” and “lacking integrity,” indirectly fueling Trump’s narrative but stopping short of endorsing the insult.
The left’s outrage machine kicked into overdrive. House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries demanded an apology on MSNBC, labeling it “ableist garbage from a man unfit for the Oval.” Disability rights group The Arc mobilized a petition that garnered 150,000 signatures by Saturday noon, urging congressional hearings on “presidential rhetoric and public harm.” In Minneapolis, a vigil outside Walz’s gubernatorial residence drew 200 protesters waving signs reading “Words Wound: Trump Must Resign the Slur.” Even some conservatives distanced themselves: Sen. Mitt Romney tweeted, “Strong words on policy are one thing. This crosses into cruelty.”
Walz, the folksy ex-teacher who charmed the 2024 campaign trail as Kamala Harris’s running mate, didn’t flinch. In a blistering Friday morning response on X—reposting Trump’s tirade alongside a smirking selfie—he fired back: “Coming from the guy who rambles at 3 a.m. about windmills causing cancer? Release the MRI results.” The jab referenced Trump’s October physical at Walter Reed, where he boasted of a “very standard” MRI but has stonewalled full disclosure amid swirling rumors of cognitive decline. Walz doubled down in a St. Paul presser, flanked by Somali-American leaders: “This isn’t about me—it’s about the families Trump just demonized. Minnesota welcomes everyone who builds, not burns. As for Don? If he’s fit to lead, prove it. Drop the scans.”
The exchange has electrified a polarized Thanksgiving hangover. Trump’s MAGA base cheered the “unfiltered truth,” with influencers like @TrumpGirl_67 echoing calls to deport Omar’s family. Critics, however, see it as exhibit A in a pattern: Trump’s post-2024 victory tour has included rallies mocking migrants as “animals” and feuds with governors from blue states. A New York Times op-ed Saturday morning framed it as “the cost of unchecked id: a presidency that normalizes hate.”
As Minnesota’s chill deepens—literally, with a lake-effect snow warning blanketing the Twin Cities—the slur’s echoes linger. Walz, ever the Midwestern pragmatist, ended his presser with a nod to unity: “We’re tougher than this noise. But America deserves better—from the top down.” Trump, predictably, hasn’t backed off; a fresh Truth Social volley Saturday morning reiterated his migration ban, sans apology. In a nation still digesting turkey and tension, this feud isn’t just political theater—it’s a mirror to our fractures, where words like “retarded” aren’t relics, but reloaded weapons. Will the outrage fade, or force a reckoning? In Trump’s America, the spotlight never dims.
