Republican Florida Congressman Matt Gaetz sent shockwaves on Twitter after posting a photo with his adopted son, Nestor, who comes from Cuba. The post came a day after Rep. Cedric Richmond (D-La.) suggested that Republicans don’t understand what it’s like to have nonwhite children. Gaetz sharply rebuked Richmond after that suggestion. “You’re claiming you have more concern about my family than I do — who in the hell do you think you are?” Gaetz said.
“For all those wondering, this is my son Nestor,” Gaetz tweeted. “We share no blood but he is my life.”
Nestor is 19 and came to Florida from Cuba when he was 12. He’ll be going to college soon.
“I am so proud of him and raising him has been the best, most rewarding thing I’ve done in my life.” Gaetz added.
For all those wondering, this is my son Nestor. We share no blood but he is my life. He came from Cuba (legally, of course) six years ago and lives with me in Florida.
I am so proud of him and raising him has been the best, most rewarding thing I’ve done in my life. pic.twitter.com/JB96wzOzYU
— Matt Gaetz (@mattgaetz) June 18, 2020
Some on social media have expressed doubts about Gaetz’s claim, which seems to have prompted Gaetz’s sister Erin to post a number of corroborative tweets:
Nestor came into our lives when he was 12 and had just lost his mother. He didn’t speak English, but luckily, Matt speaks Spanish.
Matt has been an incredible father to Nestor, who just graduated from high school and will be attending college in the fall. So proud of them both. https://t.co/n71SvN0Ep0
— Erin Gaetz (@ErinGaetz) June 18, 2020
Also, this may be tough for @mattgaetz and I to admit, but Nestor is definitely the best athlete in the family! pic.twitter.com/R5YvkS2nC0
— Erin Gaetz (@ErinGaetz) June 18, 2020
Here’s one of my favorite family photos from a few Easters ago. My dad, Matt and Nestor planting a smooch on my mama! pic.twitter.com/6iE2J0jwSE
— Erin Gaetz (@ErinGaetz) June 18, 2020
Christmas Eve 2013. Nestor and Rep. Santa Claus (R-North Pole). pic.twitter.com/zgM2JZjw1f
— Erin Gaetz (@ErinGaetz) June 18, 2020
Nevertheless, there are perhaps hundreds of tweets, if not thousands from the left making all sorts of accusations:
as a 31-year-old bachelor Matt Gaetz (adopted?) a 12-year-old Cuban boy named Nestor for reasons I cannot begin to fathom.
— Chris "Self-Quarantining" in California (@CoastalElite28) June 18, 2020
So… Matt Gaetz, an unmarried man, when he was 32 years old, adopted a 13 year old boy from overseas… calls this boy his “life”… but has never bothered to mention him once before? Nestor isn’t even mentioned in his Wikipedia.
Okay. https://t.co/a3ctrFC7HO
— Pé (@4everNeverTrump) June 18, 2020
Matt Gaetz has a 19 year old “adopted son” named Nestor.
How long before Lindsey Graham introduces us to his “adopted son?”
— The USA Singers (@TheUSASingers) June 18, 2020
Matt Gaetz: “This is my ‘son’ Nestor. I adopted him from Cuba when he was 12 years old. I kept him in the closet for 6 years, for his own safety”.
— Hoodlum 🇺🇸 (@NotHoodlum) June 18, 2020
Translation: "This is the love of my life, Nestor. I'm too ashamed to come out as gay because I'm known as a conservative Republican and those people are mean".
— cyndi rivett (@CyndiCynth) June 18, 2020
"Nestor" turned 19 – so he was only 15 in this picture.
That makes Matt Gaetz not only gay but ALSO a pedophile….
— 🚫AntiTrump🍄Antifa💊⛳ #resistance #HumanScum (@AntiTrumpresis1) June 18, 2020
I’m honestly pretty sure Nestor is actually Matt Gaetz’s secret gay lover.
Did he groom him until he was old enough to consent or is Matt a pedophile? We’ll probably never know. pic.twitter.com/PNAqRuQwO3
— Lindsey #StayTheFHome 🌱 🛹 💙 (@BlueTX2020) June 18, 2020
NARRATOR: “Matt was, at first, cagey about introducing America to his boyfriend.”
— Mrs. Betty Bowers (@BettyBowers) June 18, 2020
In all seriousness though, Nestor has to be Gaetz gay lover right? Or is he just a dude who unfortunately lives in the panhandle? I have so many questions for @mattgaetz
— Todd 🌻 (@thens08) June 18, 2020
I didn't wake up today thinking @mattgaetz would admit he's living with a 19 year old gay cuban man that he calls his son.
— P A C E (@pesachlattin) June 18, 2020
Did you notice a theme here? Aren’t these tweets the epitome of homophobia? You can bet that if Gaetz were a Democrat, and it was conservatives raising questions about his sexuality and insinuating an improper relationship there’d be endless media coverage about how their reaction proved that Republicans are homophobic. I don’t know anything about Matt Gaetz’s sexuality, but if you assume he is gay, what does it say about your opinion of homosexual men if you imply that there must something improper about a gay man adopting a son?
In most circumstances, you’d be called out as a homophobe. So, let’s call out the blatant homophobia of the self-righteous left, shall we?
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Matt Margolis is the author of Trumping Obama: How President Trump Saved Us From Barack Obama’s Legacy and the bestselling book The Worst President in History: The Legacy of Barack Obama. You can follow Matt on Twitter @MattMargolis
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