The Wisconsin Democratic Party put out a statement noting that Rep. Derrick Van Orden (R-WI) has posted on X more than 550 times in the past 5 days since far-right firebrand Charlie Kirk was shot and killed in Utah.
In the immediate aftermath, Van Orden followed other lawmakers in calling for an end to political violence. The Monday statement, shared by Huffington Post reporter Jennifer Bendery on X, noted the prompt change.
In the time since, Van Orden has continuously called Democrats "domestic terrorists," claimed Democrats tried to kill President Donald Trump, demanded an investigation into George Soros for the murder for Kirk, called for a `second "Civil War," and told his followers that they should enact violence against Democratsand the media everywhere, Bendery reported.
The two suspected would-be assassins of Trump were at one point supporters of his, though one said he was wrong to have voted for Trump previously and then voted in the Democratic primary in 2024. There is no evidence linking Soros to the murder of Kirk.
“America’s most dedicated keyboard warrior, Derrick Van Orden, will not stop encouraging violence against Democrats and reporters — when is someone in his own party going to tell him to stop?” said party spokesperson Philip Shulman in a statement.
Bendery also pointed to an X post in which Van Orden's comments said Sept. 11, 2001, was the reason he went to war for over 20 years. "Yesterday," he said, citing the Kirk shooting, "is the reason I will be at war for the next 20. I will not allow these leftist scumbags to take my country."
As the grandmother of Kirk's alleged shooter said to the press, her family members are dedicated Republicans.
“My son, his dad, is a Republican for Trump,” Debbie Robinson told the Daily Mail. “Most of my family members are Republican. I don’t know any single one who’s a Democrat.”
Van Orden's violent rhetoric also earned condemnation from home state newspaper, The Wisconsin Examiner. The editor-in-chief penned a column alleging that Van Orden isn't even original in his attacks, noting he's merely taking the Trump talking points and running with them.
"Of course, it is Trump who has a long history of inviting political violence against Democrats and members of the press. Van Orden is copying him by escalating that rhetoric in Wisconsin," the editorial said.
The Wisconsin Democratic Party alleged, "He is going completely unchecked by his own party as he pours gasoline on an open flame."