Republican Rep. Derrick Van Orden of Wisconsin defended yelling at teenage Senate pages for treating the Capitol Rotunda “like a frat house common room.”
According to a transcript written by a page after the incident, Van Orden told them to “Wake the f‑‑‑ up you little s‑‑‑‑," Punchbowl News reported. "What the f‑‑‑ are you all doing? Get the f‑‑‑ out of here. You are defiling the space you [pieces of s‑‑‑].
“Who the f‑‑‑ are you?”
The group of 16 and 17-year-olds, who assist Senate operations, were in the Capitol late because the upper chamber was working on amendments to the National Defense Authorization Act.
Despite backlash from some lawmakers and the press, the retired Navy SEAL defended his remarks.
"The Capitol Rotunda served as a field hospital when countless Union soldiers died fighting to free men in the Civil War," he said in a statement. "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 treated like a frat house common room. Threatening a congressman with bad press to excuse poor behavior is a reminder of everything that’s wrong with Washington. Luckily, bad press has never bothered me and if it’s the price I pay for standing up for what’s right, then so be it."
Sounds about right. I understand that a lot of Gen Y sissies get upset when men hold children to standards. Accept that Van Orden is unlike you and there’s no way you could understand him or his fellow vets. Stop presuming to judge them. @MarlonBateman https://t.co/f5cfBFMX8C
— Kurt Schlichter (@KurtSchlichter) July 27, 2023
He and his staff also fired back at a reporter who claimed Van Orden and staff were partying before the incident.
How do you say you have never been to Wisconsin without saying you have never been to Wisconsin?
— Derrick Van Orden (@derrickvanorden) July 27, 2023
Those were constituents, you must be a flat-lander. https://t.co/S1sfFlWvQg
If Max had reached out on this (he didn’t), I would’ve told him that @RepVanOrden regularly hosts beer and cheese tours with constituents.
— Anna Kelly (@AnnaKellyWI) July 27, 2023
The congressman hosted roughly 50 constituents and visitors yesterday before a private tour of the Capitol. But glad you got some retweets. https://t.co/DL5muzr4yS