In his first-ever interview, Gus Walz explained his instantly viral moment at the Democratic National Convention in August when his father, Gov. Tim Walz, accepted the nomination for vice president. Gus pointed at his father, stood up and, with tears in his eyes, said, “That’s my dad!”

“I was just being emotional,” Gus, 18, said in a “CBS Mornings” interview that aired Monday. “There’s nothing wrong with showing emotions.”

During the interview, Gwen Walz explained that Gus was diagnosed with a nonverbal learning disorder, ADHD and an anxiety disorder in the sixth grade.

The experience brought the pair closer than ever and Gus said his mom is his best friend.

“Routine really helps me, you know. Consistency. So I think my mom and me were, like, ‘All right, let’s go in. Let’s go try and figure some stuff out.’ And that’s really kind of what started us getting super, super close,” Gus said. “Whatever I need, my mom’s there. She’s the most important person in my life.”

Here’s what else Gus had to say during the interview:

On what he remembers about the DNC:

“It was crazy. And I’m looking at my mom and I’m like, you know, that’s my dad. He’s right there. He’s right in front of America. All these people chanting our last name, it was super overwhelming. Because to me, he’s just regular old dad, you know, just normal dad. Golfs with me, makes food, cleans the cars, everything like that. And in that moment it was something bigger. It was just surreal.”

On his reaction to those who criticized his viral moment:

“I just kind of ignored it, I guess, was the only way to put it. I just continued to do what I do. I just blocked it out because I was just being emotional. Like, 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. So, I kind of just blocked that out.”

What he wants people to know about him:

“I think some people think I’m a little slow and, like, I’m not like a normal kid. And I think that I’m one of the most normal people that you could find … I am a normal kid who likes to play volleyball, loves his family, loves his friends and likes to help people out.”

On how his disorders help him in his life:

“There’s definitely some big strengths … I’m really good at making relationships with people. One of the things I’m not as good at is picking up on non-verbal cues like when somebody, you know, says they’re done or they’re ready to be done. Sometimes I can’t tell if they’re being serious or not.

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“Like a volleyball ref. Sometimes I’ll do something wrong and they’ll go up and they’ll be like, ‘All right, you’ve got to knock that off.’ But I’m like, oh they’re just messing. And then I’ll go back and I’ll do it again and get in a little bit more trouble. So what I’ve learned is a strength for me is to make that relationship before the game. So I’ll go up and greet the ref before the game and be like hey this is me.”

On his plans for later that night, after his volleyball game:

“There’s a promposal going on after. I’ve been talking to this girl. Her name’s Eleanor. Really nice girl. And I’m going to ask her to prom.” (She said yes.)

Fellow judges have elected Judge Christopher Jon Lehmann to serve as chief judge of Minnesota’s First Judicial District for a two-year term, the Minnesota Judicial Branch announced on Monday.

Lehmann, who currently is assistant chief judge of the district, will begin serving as chief judge on July 1. Judge Charles Webber was elected to serve as assistant chief judge, also beginning July 1.

Judges Christopher Jon Lehmann, left, and Charles Webber (Courtesy of the Minnesota Judicial Branch)

Minnesota’s First Judicial District consists of Carver, Dakota, Goodhue, Le Sueur, McLeod, Scott and Sibley counties.

Lehmann joined the bench in October 2014 and is chambered in Dakota County. Before he became a judge, he was a  partner and associate at Grannis & Lehmann P.A. in South St. Paul, an assistant public defender in the First Judicial District, an assistant city attorney for the city of St. Paul, and an associate at Grannis & Grannis P.A. He received his J.D., cum laude, from William Mitchell College of Law, and a B.A. in Business Administration and Political Science, magna cum laude, from Concordia College.

“I’m honored to be elected Chief Judge of the First District, and I want to thank my colleagues for their trust and support,” he said in the press release. “The First District has a strong tradition of thoughtful, steady leadership, and I’m committed to carrying that forward.”

Webber, who was appointed to the district as a judge in May 2021, is chambered in the Scott County Justice Center in Shakopee.

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A federal judge on Monday refused to block the Internal Revenue Service from sharing immigrants’ tax data with Immigration and Customs Enforcement for the purpose of identifying and deporting people illegally in the U.S.

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In a win for the Trump administration, U.S. District Judge Dabney Friedrich denied a preliminary injunction in a lawsuit filed by nonprofit groups. They argued that undocumented immigrants who pay taxes are entitled to the same privacy protections as U.S. citizens and immigrants who are legally in the country.

Friedrich, who was appointed by President Donald Trump, had previously refused to grant a temporary order in the case.

The decision comes less than a month after former acting IRS commissioner Melanie Krause resigned over the deal allowing ICE to submit names and addresses of immigrants inside the U.S. illegally to the IRS for cross-verification against tax records.

The IRS has been in upheaval over Trump administration decisions to share taxpayer data. A previous acting commissioner announced his retirement earlier amid a furor over Elon Musk’s Department of Government Efficiency gaining access to IRS taxpayer data.

The Treasury Department says the agreement with ICE will help carry out President Donald Trump’s agenda to secure U.S. borders and is part of his larger nationwide immigration crackdown, which has resulted in deportations, workplace raids and the use of an 18th century wartime law to deport Venezuelan migrants.

The acting ICE director has said working with Treasury and other departments is “strictly for the major criminal cases.”

Advocates, however, say the IRS-DHS information-sharing agreement violates privacy laws and diminishes the privacy of all Americans.

By LISA MASCARO and KEVIN FREKING

WASHINGTON (AP) — House Republicans revealed the sweeping tax provisions for President Donald Trump’s big bill Monday, tallying at least $4.9 trillion in costs so far, partly paid for with reductions to Medicaid and other programs used by millions of Americans.

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The House Ways and Means Committee named its package ‘ ‘THE ONE, BIG, BEAUTIFUL BILL’’ in all capital letters, a nod to Trump himself. It seeks to extend the tax breaks approved during Trump’s first term — and boost the standard deduction, child tax credit and estate tax exemption — while adding new tax breaks on tipped wages, overtime pay, Social Security benefits and auto loans that Trump promised during his campaign for the White House.

There’s also a tripling of the state and local tax deduction, called SALT, from $10,000 up to $30,000 for couples, which certain high-tax state GOP lawmakers from New York and California already rejected as too meager. Private universities would be hit with hefty new tax on their endowments, as much as 21%, as the Trump administration goes after the Ivy League and other campuses.

Overall the package is touching off the biggest political debate over taxes, spending and the nation’s priorities in nearly a decade, echoing the GOP’s failed campaign to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act, or Obamacare, in 2017. And the costs are only preliminary, and expected to soar.

“Republicans need to UNIFY,” Trump posted on social media before departing for a trip abroad to the Middle East.

Trump said when he returns to Washington, “we will work together on any and all outstanding issues, but there shouldn’t be many — The Bill is GREAT. We have no alternative, WE MUST WIN!”

But one key Republican, Sen. Josh Hawley of Missouri, implored his party not to touch Medicaid, arguing that cutting health care to pay for tax breaks is both “morally wrong and politically suicidal.”

“If Republicans want to be a working-class party — if we want to be a majority party — we must ignore calls to cut Medicaid and start delivering on America’s promise for America’s working people,” Hawley wrote in The New York Times.

Round-the-clock work ahead

As Republicans race toward House Speaker Mike Johnson’s Memorial Day deadline to pass Trump’s big bill of tax breaks and spending cuts, they are preparing to flood the zone with round-the-clock public hearings starting Tuesday and stitch the various sections together in what will become a massive package.

The politics ahead are uncertain. The bipartisan Joint Committee on Taxation said Monday that tax breaks would reduce revenue by $4.9 trillion over the decade — and that was before Trump’s new tax breaks were included.

Texas Rep. Chip Roy, a member of the conservative House Freedom Caucus, warned the price tag could climb to $20 trillion, piling onto the deficits and debt.

“I sure hope House & Senate leadership are coming up with a backup plan,” Roy posted on social media, “…. because I’m not here to rack up an additional $20 trillion in debt over 10 years.”

House Republicans have been huddling behind closed doors, working out final provisions in the 389-page bill.

The legislation proposes to increase the child tax credit from $2,000 to $2,500 for four years and adds new requirements focused on preventing undocumented immigrants from benefiting from the credit even if the children are U.S. citizens. The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, a liberal think tank, estimates it would affect 4.5 million children who are U.S. citizens or lawful residents.

It would also boost the estate tax exemption, which is now $14 million, to $15 million and indexes future increases to inflation.

As for the president’s promises, the legislation includes Trump’s “no taxes on tips” pledge, providing a deduction for those workers in service industry and other jobs that have traditionally relied on tips. It directs the Treasury secretary to issue guidance to avoid businesses gaming the system.

The package also provides tax relief for automobile shoppers with a temporary deduction of up to $10,000 on car loan interest, applying the benefit only for those vehicles where the final assembly occurred in the United States. The tax break would expire at the end of Trump’s term.

For seniors, there would be a bolstered $4,000 deduction on Social Security wages for those with adjusted incomes no higher than $75,000 for individuals and $150,000 for couples.

But one hard-fought provision, the deduction for state and local taxes known as SALT, appears to be a work in progress. The legislation proposes lifting the cap to $15,000 for single filers and $30,000 for couples, but with a reduction at higher incomes — about $200,000 for singles and $400,000 for couples.

“Still a hell no,” wrote Rep. Nick LaLota, R-N.Y., on social media.

Battle over Medicaid

Meanwhile, dozens of House Republicans have told Johnson and GOP leaders they will not support cuts to Medicaid, which provides some 70 million Americans with health care, nor to green energy tax breaks that businesses back home have been relying on to invest in new wind, solar and renewable projects.

All told, 11 committees in the House have been compiling their sections of the package as Republicans seek at least $1.5 trillion in savings to help cover the cost of preserving the 2017 tax breaks, which are expiring at the end of the year. The Agriculture Committee, with its anticipated changes to food stamps, will the the last one, expected later Monday.

Late Sunday, House Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee unveiled the cost-saving centerpiece of the package, with at least $880 billion in cuts largely to Medicaid to help cover the cost of the tax breaks.

While Republicans insist they are simply rooting out “waste, fraud and abuse” to generate savings with new work and eligibility requirements, Democrats warn that millions of Americans will lose coverage. In the 15 years since Obamacare became law, Medicaid has only expanded as most states have tapped into federal funds.

A preliminary estimate from the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office said the proposals would reduce the number of people with health care by 8.6 million.

To be eligible for Medicaid, there would be new “community engagement requirements” of at least 80 hours per month of work, education or service for able-bodied adults without dependents. People would also have to verify their eligibility to be in the program twice a year, rather than just once.

There are substantial cuts proposed for green energy programs and tax breaks, rolling back climate-change strategies from the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, including rescinding funds for a range of energy loans and investment programs while providing expedited permitting for natural gas development and oil pipelines.

Associated Press writers Amanda Seitz and Leah Askarinam contributed to this report.