Derrick Van Orden denies ever being against abortion exceptions despite previously opposing abortion exceptions

Wisconsin Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R) has been trading barbs with his opponent Rebecca Cooke about what his previous stance on abortion was, denying he opposes exceptions despite previously calling rape and incest exceptions “evil.”

The latest exchange happened on X, where Cooke pledged to never support a national abortion ban. Van Orden responded by saying she is lying and claiming that it is a “state issue.” He then linked to a Wisconsin Public Radio article of him saying he supports some exceptions in April.

You are shameless and just lying.

You support the most radical position possible: taxpayer funded abortions up to birth for any reason, including sex selection.

I made my position chrystal clear last April.

This is a state issue. Period.

Recipes:https://t.co/m2fEKFFrKy https://t.co/n4wR3KLAH3

— Derrick Van Orden (@derrickvanorden) September 22, 2024

But Van Orden did not acknowledge that he was only calling for exceptions in Wisconsin’s abortion ban in order to compromise with “radical” Democrats.

“It’s deeply troubling to me as a Christian to even bring those things up. But, you know what? We have to understand where we’re at,” Van Orden said on a conservative talk radio show.

And during a radio interview with “WSAU Feedback” in 2020, Van Orden made it clear that he is “ardently pro-life,” and he called for women to “have enough strength of character” to give birth. The Jan. 6 attendee also seemingly opposed rape and incest exceptions.

“You can’t heal that evil [sexual assault] by adding more on it,” Van Orden said.

Van Orden goes on to urge women who have been raped to seek out organizations to help “shepherd through this process” and put the children up for adoption.

Van Orden took office in January of 2023 after flipping Wisconsin’s 3rd Congressional District seat red. During his time in Congress, Van Orden’s temper has become a topic of national discussion, leading to outbursts, name-calling and an ethics complaint.

Van Orden’s seat is seen as one of the most vulnerable Republican-held Congressional districts this cycle, and Cooke inched ahead of Van Orden by two percentage points in a recent poll from GBAO.