MADISON, Wis. — Derrick Van Orden seems to be coming to terms with his inevitable loss in November and, with his campaign in freefall, is getting desperate. Just this week, the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel revealed that a Trump-backed Super PAC is investing more in WI-01, a seat long considered safer for Republicans, than Van Orden’s race. 

“Despite what seems to be the MAGA money machine turning its back on Van Orden, he is even more desperate for their attention,” said Democratic Party of Wisconsin spokesperson Haley King. “His plan of attack? Insult Muslim people, Black people, gay people, teachers, and lie about cutting Medicaid for his constituents, all while continuing to post bizarre AI on his Twitter and embarrass himself by sucking up to the ultra-wealthy elites like Elon Musk and beg them to continue funding his campaign.”

See below for more on Van Orden’s rough two weeks: 

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Trump Super PAC prioritizing Steil race in Wisconsin over Van Orden’s

A President Donald Trump-affiliated super PAC has spent more on U.S. Rep. Bryan Steil’s bid to keep the seat representing Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District, a race that’s considered safer than the toss-up match in Wisconsin’s 3rd District.

According to Federal Election Commission disclosures, the super PAC dubbed “No Going Back PAC Inc,” which the New York Times reported is linked to Trump’s super PAC, MAGA Inc., spent roughly $90,000 total on mailings in Wisconsin’s 1st Congressional District on Sept. 5.
 

Wisconsin Examiner:At Dallas convention, Van Orden touts healthcare record despite voting for Medicaid cuts

Last year, Van Orden voted for the Trump-signed One Big Beautiful Bill Act. In his speech, he said the bill, and the tax cuts it enacted, brought millions of dollars in funding for rural hospitals in Wisconsin. 

[…]

In fact, the bill made huge cuts to Medicaid, which for Wisconsin will result in losing $7 billion in federal healthcare funds over the next 10 years, an analysis by KFF found last year. In his speech, Van Orden also touted more than $200 million that will go to Wisconsin hospitals because of the law, but that is far less than those hospitals would have received without the Medicaid cuts.
 

Wisconsin Independent: Van Orden praises ‘high-quality’ GOP rural healthcare program as Medicaid cuts loom

Wisconsin Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden told the crowd at the Republican National Convention in Dallas last week that President Donald Trump and Republicans had secured funding for rural healthcare.

William Garcia, a Democratic Party leader from Van Orden’s district whose daughter relies on Medicaid to cover medical treatment, says the grant fund that Van Orden praised will only make a small dent in the estimated $1 trillion in cuts to Medicaid that will result from the budget law Trump signed into law in 2025. 

[…]

Last summer, KFF estimated there would be reductions in federal Medicaid spending in rural areas of $137 billion as a result of provisions in Trump’s budget law — nearly three times the $50 billion allotted to the rural health program. The health policy nonprofit estimated that Wisconsin will see a $7 billion decrease in federal Medicaid spending over 10 years.
 

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Elon Musk PAC spends in support of Derrick Van Orden in key race

Elon Musk is once again weighing into Wisconsin politics, this time spending on the side of Republican U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden in Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District.

[…]

America PAC spent millions in support of former Waukesha County Judge Brad Schimel when he ran for the state Supreme Court, in what was the most expensive court race in U.S. history. Schimel fell short in the race to liberal Dane County Judge Susan Crawford.

[…]

Haley King, a spokesperson for the Wisconsin Democrats, also criticized the spending.

“Elon Musk, the richest man in the world, is trying to buy another Wisconsin election,” she said. “Musk found himself a little MAGA puppet in Derrick Van Orden, who has continuously sold himself off to the highest bidder while leaving working Wisconsinites behind to burden the cost of his policies.

“Wisconsin voters already rejected Musk’s attempts to buy himself a Wisconsin Supreme Court seat, and they will reject his attempts to buy our Congressional seats in November.”
 

Badger Herald: AI use in Wisconsin District 3 campaign ads draws criticism

The race to represent Wisconsin’s District 3 has turned into a debate over whether or not politicians should be allowed to campaign using artificial intelligence in advertisements, according to Wisconsin Public Radio. Rep. Derrick Van Orden, R-Prairie du Chien, posted an AI-generated video of Democratic nominee for District 3 Rebecca Cooke Aug. 13 to X (formerly Twitter).
 

WEAU: AI posts of candidates raise concerns about misinformation on social media

Scrolling on X, you may have come across a few videos posted by Derrick Van Orden. The videos are deepfake, AI-generated videos of Rebecca Cooke, who is running against Congressman Derrick Van Orden. The videos say Rebecca Cooke is the ‘anointed one’ by the Democratic establishment, which can be confusing to viewers.

“Candidates have made up stuff about their opponents, but it does get into some real ethical questions,” Dr. Geoff Peterson, a political science professor at UW-Eau Claire, said. “AI has the potential to mislead people in a way that simple statements about candidates simply do not.”

Rebecca Cooke, who these videos depict, said it is frustrating to see them online.

“When you’re trying to figure out who to cast your vote for, and you’re seeing videos of someone, and you’re not sure if it’s real or not, which we can tell voters are unsure this is actually me- it’s deceitful and misleading to voters,” Cooke said. “I think that we have to have some guardrails around AI and its use, especially when it comes to political campaigns, but for so many different things.”
 

Milwaukee Courier: Wisconsin Muslim group again condemns Derrick Van Orden after radio appearance

The Wisconsin Muslim Civic Alliance is once again condemning remarks made by Congressman Derrick Van Orden during a recent radio appearance.

The condemnation stems from remarks made by Van Orden on “The Vicki McKenna Show” on Sept. 1.

[…]

The WMCA said in a statement Sept. 10 that Van Orden “made sweeping and bigoted generalizations about Muslims and Islam” during his appearance on the radio program.
 

Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Van Orden stands by comments on Islam as advocates denounce them

U.S. Rep. Derrick Van Orden is defending his recent comment that Islam “does not comport with modern Western thought,” which an advocacy group condemned as anti-Muslim.

Van Orden, a Republican representing Wisconsin’s 3rd District, said in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel that the religion of Islam, “when practiced as written, is a violent religion that calls for the murder of anyone that leaves Islam, for instance.”

The comments Sept. 10 came in response to the Wisconsin Muslim Civic Alliance calling out Van Orden’s rhetoric on Vicki McKenna’s radio show Sept. 1. The alliance said Van Orden “made sweeping and bigoted generalizations about Muslims and Islam” during the program.

“We strongly condemn these remarks as an attempt to portray Muslims as dangerous and worthy of suspicion,” the alliance said.
 

Milwaukee Courier: Van Orden says a gay person can’t be the Democrats presidential nominee because Black people ‘don’t want to vote for a homosexual’

Congressman Derrick Van Orden believes a gay person can’t get elected in the Democratic Party because Black people wouldn’t vote for them.

[…]

Shaundel Washington-Spivey is the first Black person to be elected mayor of La Crosse. He also is openly gay.

“Van Orden is making an out-of-touch and sweeping generalization about the Black community to serve his own political agenda,” Washington-Spivey said in a statement. “Claiming Black people aren’t ready for a gay president is just his most recent attempt to divide Americans by pitting two communities against each other. He would rather blame historically marginalized groups rather than reckon with the Republican Party’s history of enabling homophobia. That is holding America back, not Black people.”
 

Raw Story: ‘I will punch someone in the face!’ Republican goes berserk over Hegseth impeachment move

An embattled GOP congressman says he’s eager to brawl on Pete Hegseth’s behalf in the wake of his fellow Republican, Rep Thomas Massie (KY) dropping impeachment articles against the embattled defense secretary this week.

“I will f—— punch someone in the face for talking about Hegseth,” Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) told Raw Story just outside the U.S. Capitol.

On Wednesday, Speaker Mike Johnson sent the House of Representatives home early ahead of November’s elections, which critics say was to avoid an impeachment vote that would have twisted many vulnerable MAGA-aligned incumbents in knots.
 

Raw Story: Berserk Republican exposed for violent fantasy escalates by targeting former teacher

A Republican lawmaker who told Raw Story he’d like to “f—ing punch someone in the face” responded to subsequent reporting by publicly shaming a former school teacher.

Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) took to X at 4:35 a.m. ET to lash out at Rachel La Due for sharing Raw Story reporter Matt Laslo’s video of the lawmaker after he’d made his expletive-laden comments about Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.

“Winning,” wrote Van Orden. “Not.”

This comment appeared above a screenshot of La Due’s X bio, which shows her to be a former middle school teacher.