Rep. Derrick Van Orden is hiding from constituents who want answers about why the Wisconsin Republican is not standing up to President Donal Trump and co-President Elon Musk’s destructive cuts to the federal government—and he’s using an antisemitic trope to defend that choice.
Van Orden did not show up to a town hall on Tuesday hosted by a grassroots organization, claiming that the attendees were all paid by George Soros, the Jewish philanthropist whom Republicans have blamed for all the world’s problems.
“There is several different George Soros funded agitator groups that have spontaneously popped up around the country and who are disrupting Republican town halls,” Van Orden told a local TV news outlet in his district. “So there's about 218 plus Republicans that have been trying to hold town halls to speak to their constituents and they're being actively disrupted by these people that are being paid by George Soros.”
For years, Republicans have blamed anything they don’t agree with on Soros.
“In far-right circles worldwide, Soros’ philanthropy often is recast as fodder for outsized conspiracy theories, including claims that he masterminds specific global plots or manipulates particular events to further his goals,” the Anti-Defamation League wrote in 2018. “Many of those conspiracy theories employ longstanding antisemitic myths, particularly the notion that rich and powerful Jews work behind the scenes, plotting to control countries and manipulate global events.”
George Soros
It's a stupid excuse dripping with antisemitism since the protesters are obviously not being paid—by Soros or anyone else.
They’re just angry that Trump and Musk are cutting critical benefits, like Social Security, Medicaid, medical research, food assistance, and more. And they want to tell their representatives to stand up to Trump and Musk and stop the destruction.
It’s why Republicans who have more guts than Van Orden and have actually held town halls have been met with angry crowds.
But Van Orden doesn’t want to hear those legitimate concerns. Instead, he’s likely hiding from his constituents not because of some lame excuse that town hall attendees are Soros plants, but rather because GOP leadership has explicitly told Republican members not to hold in-person events.
In fact, the local Wisconsin reporters asked one of the attendees if she was being paid by Soros.
"I'm not, I've never been paid to agitate or activate," said Tanja Birke, a member of the Concerned Citizens of Vernon County, which hosted the town hall that Van Orden dodged.
Because Republicans are in hiding, Democrats are holding their own town halls in Republican-held districts to hear voter concerns and tell them how Democrats would fix their issues.
Indeed, Democratic Rep. Mark Pocan of Wisconsin showed up to the town hall that Van Orden declined to attend.
“PACKED house in Viroqua, WI for the town hall in [Van Orden’s] district. Derrick was a NO SHOW, but over 300 people in the town of 4500 showed up. Empty seat for him,” Pocan wrote in a post on X. “Of note: Derrick doesn’t respond to constituents & they don’t like cuts to Medicaid & other programs.”
The Department of Veterans Affairs headquarters in Washington, D.C.
Van Orden, for his part, is an asshole.
In 2023, he came under fire for berating a group of high schoolers in the U.S. Capitol, accusing them of “defiling” the building by taking photos in the Rotunda. Van Orden screamed in the teenagers’ faces, telling them to “get the fuck out,” according to NBC News.
Earlier in March, he threatened to report a disabled veteran who had been fired from his job with the Department of Veterans Affairs due to cuts made by Musk’s so-called Department of Government Efficiency.
The veteran, Jesus "Tony" Ruiz, messaged Van Orden on LinkedIn after he was fired telling Van Orden to stop the DOGE firings.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Ruiz got this unhinged message from Van Orden in response:
I will be referring you to DOGE as it seems that at 13:46 on a Monday you should have been working for veterans, not posting trash about your boss, President Trump. There needs to be accountability. Now. Have a great day.
Van Orden is one of the most vulnerable Republicans in 2026. He barely won reelection in 2024, defeating his Democratic opponent by little more than 2 percentage points in a good year for Republicans in the Badger State. Because of that, Van Orden will be a top Democratic target in the 2026 midterm elections—a year that is expected to be much less favorable for Republicans.
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