The Internet Is Saluting This Congressman's Son Who Made C-SPAN Actually Entertaining

C-Span, the nonprofit network that televises proceedings of the United States federal government, is rarely entertaining. Yes, it’s a tremendously important resource, but it’s not someplace we tune in for funsies. Sure, there can be unintentional comedy in the halls of Congress, but it’s less “lighthearted laughter” and more “we laugh to keep from crying.” But on Monday, a congressman’s son made C-Span the best five minutes of television that day.

Rep. John Rose (R, TN) took to the floor during a mostly uneventful session to give a speech defending embattled former president (and presumptive Republican nominee for president) Donald Trump after he was found guilty of 34 federal charges in New York. But the speech — the reason the C-Span cameras were trained on him — feels besides the point. Because sitting behind the congressman was his son, 6-year-old Guy Rose who joined his dad at work after graduating kindergarten the week before, according to reporting from the Associated Press. The young redhead began his onscreen time cheesing for the camera. His smile was adorably distracting. But then, as happens with 6-year-olds, smiling got boring and he started making silly faces. That’s when he went from adorably distracting to hilariously distracting.

Over the course of the five-minute speech, Guy could be seen fidgeting behind his pops. While he shifted out of the direct view of the camera after a couple minutes, he could be seen fidgeting with a green toy, occasionally poking his head back in the frame to continue his shenanigans, all while Rep. Rose appeared to be completely unaware of the kerfuffle.

Of course, it wasn’t long before the unsuspecting congressman became aware of his speech’s co-star. He shared the moment on X (formerly Twitter). “This is what I get for telling my son Guy to smile at the camera for his little brother,” he wrote, referring to his youngest child, Sam, 3.

In an interview with Fox & Friends co-host Steve Doocy, Guy — who described his father’s job as “boring stuff” — explained that his seemingly nonsensical hand motions were actually his attempts to spell out S-A-M. “I was making a symbol to my brother to try to make him laugh,” he said.

Rep. Rose went on to tell Doocy that Guy was with him in an attempt to divide-and-conquer childcare duties with his wife, Chelsea, who also works full time. Guy continued to rib his dad during his Fox interview. When Rep. Rose defended his job as actually being interesting, Guy wagged his finger and stage whispered “he’s not telling the truth.”

It’s the kind of humbling but ultimately very cute experience most parents will experience at some point in their lives. And fortunately, Rep. Roses moment provided the whole country with a few chuckles, IRL and online.

“That Moment You Regret ‘Bring Your Child to Work Day,’” jokes outlet @RT_India_news.

“He’s also making the same faces I make when watching members of Congress speak,” tweets @colinjones.

X user @chris_labarthe suggests a way to make this feeling last longer. “Speaker Jeffries should require that all Republicans holding the floor in the 119th Congress be accompanied by this redheaded kid.”

Honestly, we’re all for having an uninhibited child sit behind every member of Congress from here on out — it could breathe new life into politics and C-Span alike!