Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz swiftly responded after President Donald Trump directed a derogatory remark at him online.
In a late-night Thanksgiving message posted to his Truth Social account on Thursday, Nov. 27, Trump lashed out at “citizens” and “patriots” he claimed have been “just plain STUPID” on immigration.
While singling out the Somali community in Minnesota, Trump used an offensive slur commonly aimed at people with intellectual disabilities to attack the Democratic governor, writing that the “Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both.”
Walz, 61, answered the insult with a barbed reply of his own. Sharing Trump’s comments on X, he wrote, “Release the MRI results.” The jab referenced an MRI that Trump reportedly underwent during an October visit to Walter Reed National Military Medical Center.
A summary of Trump’s most recent known physical exam, conducted on Oct. 10, stated that the 79-year-old president received lab testing, advanced imaging and “preventive health assessments” as “part of his ongoing health maintenance plan,” according to White House physician Dr. Sean Barbabella.
Barbabella said the exam was intended to “ensure optimal cardiovascular health and continued wellness.”
He did not detail what specific imaging or “preventive assessments” were performed, but said Trump’s lab results were “exceptional” and that his cardiac age is “approximately 14 years younger than his chronological age.” Cardiac age is a measure used to compare a person’s cardiovascular health and risk of heart disease or heart attack with what would be expected at their actual age, according to the Heart Foundation.
Trump appeared to reveal more about the testing while speaking with reporters on Air Force One on Oct. 27. “I got an MRI,” he said at the time. “It was perfect.” The White House has not clarified how extensive the scans were or why they were conducted outside the normal schedule of the president’s annual physical in April.
In July, a separate medical visit resulted in Trump being diagnosed with chronic venous insufficiency, a condition that “causes blood to pool in your leg veins, leading to high pressure in those veins,” according to the Cleveland Clinic.
Alongside Walz’s health-related dig, he reposted a screenshot of Trump’s 11:30 p.m. Truth Social post, which also contained racist remarks about Minnesota Democratic Rep. Ilhan Omar, who is Somali American.
Trump further claimed that the “refugee burden is the leading cause of social dysfunction in America,” and falsely asserted that “hundreds of thousands of refugees from Somalia” are “completely taking over” Minnesota.
“Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for ‘prey’ as our wonderful people stay locked in their apartments and houses hoping against hope that they will be left alone,” he wrote.
Data does not support Trump’s claim. According to U.S. Census figures, roughly 61,300 Somalis live in Minnesota — about 1.1% of the state’s population, Newsweek reports. Other estimates, such as those from Minnesota Compass, put the number closer to 80,000, still far short of “hundreds of thousands.”
The White House, Walz and Omar did not immediately respond to requests for comment.
