Defiant Van Orden won’t apologize for Capitol Hill cursing
(The Center Square) – Western Wisconsin’s congressman is not backing down, and certainly not apologizing, for yelling and cursing at a group of Capitol staffers this week.
A group of Senate pages told Punchbowl News that Congressman Derrick Van Orden yelled at them Wednesday for taking pictures in the Capitol rotunda.
On Friday, Van Orden said the story and the reaction to the story isn’t “serious.”
“The people who have brought this up are not serious people,” Van Orden said during an interview on News Talk 1130 WISN. “They are not serious reporters, they are not serious journalists, they are not serious politicians. So let’s stop pretending that they are.”
Democrats in Wisconsin have been criticizing Van Orden since the story first broke Thursday.
“This unhinged behavior directed towards 16 and 17-year-old kids is disqualifying, and is only the latest example of Van Orden’s disturbing conduct,” Democratic Party of Wisconsin Communications Director Joe Oslund said in a statement. “Derrick Van Orden has demonstrated time and again that he simply lacks the temperament and good judgment to serve.”
Top senators also condemned Van Orden for his comments.
Democratic Majority Leader Chuck Schumer said he was “shocked when I heard about” Van Orden’s behavior.
Republican Minority Leader Mitch McConnell agreed, saying he wants to “associate myself with the remarks of the majority leader.”
Van Orden explained he was critical of the Senate pages because he considers the Capitol Rotunda sacred ground.
“The Capitol Rotunda served as a field hospital where countless Union soldiers died fighting to free men in the Civil War. I have long said our nation’s Capitol is a symbol of the sacrifice our servicemen and women have made for this country and should never be treated like a frat house common room,” Van Orden added. “Luckily, bad press has never bothered me and if it’s the price I pay to stand up for what’s right, then so be it.”
