President Donald Trump on Sunday defended his use of the word �retarded� to describe Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, a remark that has drawn condemnation across the political spectrum but which Trump insisted was justified, claiming there is �something wrong� with the Democratic governor.

The exchange unfolded aboard Air Force One during a press Q&A, after a reporter asked the president whether he stood by his widely criticized Thanksgiving message in which he labeled Walz �seriously retarded.�

�Yeah, I think there�s something wrong with him,� Trump said. �Absolutely. Sure. You have a problem with it?�

Trump then launched into a renewed attack on Walz�s handling of immigration and refugee resettlement in Minnesota, centering on the state�s Somali community.

�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,� Trump said. �Yeah, there�s something wrong with Walz.�

The controversy erupted Thursday when Trump used his Thanksgiving post on Truth Social to lash out at Walz, accusing him of allowing Minnesota to be �taken over� by Somali refugees and claiming that �Somalian gangs are roving the streets looking for �prey.��

�The seriously retarded Governor of Minnesota, Tim Walz, does nothing, either through fear, incompetence, or both.�

Numerous advocacy groups condemned the remarks as reckless and dehumanizing, while disability advocates blasted Trump for using a slur.

Gov. Walz responded briefly: �Release your MRI results,� Walz wrote – something which Trump has pledged to do.

(YWN World Headquarters – NYC)