Matt Gaetz referring to his "son" as his "helper":

[George II]

Link to tweet

[CurtEastPoint]

1. that is some tackyass furniture.

[George II]

4. All it's missing is the clear plastic slip covers. Mrs. Constanza, can you do something about that?

[kimbutgar]

2. My gaydar went off seeing this picture.

[dalton99a]

8. +1

[tulipsandroses]

11. That would be disgusting. He says he has known him since he was 7 yrs old - Gay Daddy?disgusting

A "gay daddy" is a thing. Sometimes its exploitive.

[George II]

12. Actually he said he came to the US when he was 12 (7 years ago), which is another lie.

[tulipsandroses]

14. Thank for the clarification

This entire thing is odd. Who hides their child?

[George II]

15. Yes, the whole thing is bizarre, in fact trumpian. In fact Nestor (too bad he got dragged into this)

was adopted by Gaetz' sister, not Matt Gaetz himself. She claims that Matt "raised him like a son". That is NOT raising a black son in America.

[FM123]

16. I'm pretty sure that's called a nephew....

[Nevilledog]

17. I understood that it was the kid's actual sister who had custody.

That sister used to date Gaetz.

Confusing fucking story.

[George II]

18. That's what I heard, too. But then Gaetz' sister adopted him. Yes, it's SO confusing, but...

...the bottom line is that poor man is NOT Matt Gaetz' son, and it's a shame that he was dragged into all of this.

The second bottom line, to Cedric Richmond's point, is that few, Gaetz included, do not know what it's like to raise a BLACK child in America.

[Nevilledog]

19. Haven't read anything about Gaetz' sister being involved.

The adoption records examined don't show sister adored him either.

Bottom line.... I'm calling bullshit on the mere idea that Gaetz gives a fuck about anyone else. If true, he would have explored thud kid's existence from day one.

[LisaL]

32. You got it all wrong.

Gaetz sister has nothing to do with it.

[LisaL]

33. No, he was not adopted by Gaetz sister.

Gaetz was dating Nestor's sister. Nestor then moved in with Gaetz and his sister. Gaetz never legally adopted Nestor.

[TheCowsCameHome]

3. Merry Christmas, Matt.

You're either six months ahead, or six months behind.

[Cha]

5. That whole ".. Nestor is his kid.. " thing is gaetz

trying to distract from the killing of George Floyd by Derek Gauvin & #BLM

Link to tweet

[George II]

7. Someone posted that the ONLY recorded Cuban adoption in the last ten years was a female....

...and not adopted by an American couple (much less a Floridian drunk racist)

Link to tweet

[Cha]

9. It would be shocking that Gaetz would LIE About such a thing!!

Link to tweet

TY George!

[struggle4progress]

6. Unmarried. Has previous unknown "adopted son." M'kay

[Cracklin Charlie]

20. Sounds like unknown "son" became known "son".

Matt had to get out in front of this story real quick.

It smells fishy.

[LiberalFighter]

10. I smell fish.

[tblue37]

13. He also refers to him as "local student" (2nd tweet):

Link to tweet

[JI7]

21. HAHAHAHHAHA, Based on this I have a bunch of sons and daughters and mothers and fathers

HAHAHHAHAHA

[keithbvadu2]

22. Legally adopted? By whom? Is he a citizen yet?

Legally adopted?

By whom?

Is he a citizen yet?

He should be by now.

[Ms. Toad]

24. Not legally adopted -

Theoretically legally here, but I'm not sure how.

Mom died of breast cancer, Gaetz acquired his "helper" while he was dating Nestor's sister.

https://people.com/politics/matt-gaetz-tells-story-boy-he-raised-as-a-son/

[Ms. Toad]

23. I wonder if Nestor identifies as white.

I would not necessarily have identified him as non-white, and more than half of all Cubans identify as white.

- since the trigger for this disclosure was Gaetz's claim to have raised a non-white son.

[George II]

28. All the Cubans I've known over the years consider themselves "white", descendants from Europeans.

[orleans]

25. fox article says the kid is "adopted"

"Rep. Matt Gaetz, R-Fla., surprised social media users Thursday by revealing he has an adopted Cuban son "

headline: "GOP Rep. Gaetz reveals adopted Cuban son on Twitter after clash with Dem congressman"

https://www.foxnews.com/politics/gaetz-reveals-adopted-cuban-son-clash-richmond

[muriel_volestrangler]

30. In 'People', he says he never adopted him

Nestor Galban was 12 and had just arrived from Cuba, where he’d grown up and where his mother had recently died of breast cancer, Gaetz says. Then a state legislator, Gaetz was dating Nestor’s older sister.

And so Nestor moved in with them — “a modern family,” Gaetz says now.

He says that, except for an interruption during Nestor’s junior year after Gaetz and Nestor’s sister broke up, Nestor has basically lived with him since moving from Cuba.
...
Gaetz did not formally adopt Nestor (and he declines to discuss Nestor’s relationship with his biological family now). He re-frames the matter, saying, “Our relationship as a family is defined by our love for each other, not by any paperwork.”
...
Detailing the timeline, Gaetz tells PEOPLE Nestor lived with him for around four years after first arriving in Cuba before going to Miami for his junior year and living with his biological father: “Then he turned 18 it was easier for him to just move back with me.” (Gaetz declines to specify when exactly he and Nestor's older sister broke up.)

Elsewhere in the interview, he describes the sequence of events this way: “There was a time period at the beginning of my service in Congress where, based on his age and other circumstances, it was not tenable for him to live with me."

https://people.com/politics/matt-gaetz-tells-story-boy-he-raised-as-a-son/

It's unclear if the ex-girlfriend formally adopted him (can you formally adopt your own brother?), or just had some form of guardianship, though I'd guess the latter if he didn't stay with her when she and Gaetz broke up.

[LisaL]

31. It doesn't appear any legal sort of adoption.

[orleans]

26. a tweet

Link to tweet

[OnDoutside]

27. Do we know if Nestor is a Dreamer ?

If so, what is Gaetz record on DACA ?

[grantcart]

29. Cubans are granted automatic refugee status

Under the Republican drafted "work around" a policy called dry foot/wet foot means that if a refugee lands on US soil they are given automatic refugee status, for that reason there are no dreamers from Cuba.

Refugees that are captured in the water are automatically denied refugee status.

IMO it is a disastrous policy. I support an expansive migrant/ refugee migration policy but we should have good screening and not accept the 1% that have a violent and/or criminal past.

[OnDoutside]

35. Thanks.

[obamanut2012]

34. I am imagining ANY Dem pol at any level doing this same thing

Fucking Pizzagate over nothing, but THIS is okay??????