From Donna Swanson
Platteville
To the Editor:
Under Derrick Van Orden and the Republican-controlled Congress, corruption in the Trump administration is unprecedented. By electing Rebecca Cooke, we will be one step closer to restoring a check on the administration’s actions.
Here are examples of corruption under the Trump administration:
Trump violated the emoluments clause of the Constitution by accepting foreign gifts, including a $400 million Boeing 747 from Qatar and a $2 billion investment in a Trump-linked crypto venture from the United Arab Emirates.
Trump profited from spending taxpayer money to use his own properties for government business.
Trump gave multiple pardons and commutations to political allies that coincided with political donations and financial collaborations.
Trump made the Justice Department cease investigations that affected his family and political allies.
Trump has made thousands of trades in stocks of companies impacted by his presidential decisions.
The Trump administration gave government contracts to companies in which his sons had financial holdings.
Most significantly, the Trump administration has violated the following amendments of the United States Constitution: 1st (Free Speech and Retaliation), 4th and 5th (Due Process and Searches), and 14th (Birthright Citizenship), as well as the Separation of Powers (Congressional Authority).
Van Orden and the republican-controlled congress are complicit in these acts as they have largely dismissed or downplayed all allegations of corruption..
Derrick Van Orden also has corruption allegations of his own. In fact, the anti-corruption organization End Citizens United named him to its 2026 “Most Corrupt” list, citing Van Orden’s taking over $142,000 from corporate PACs and then voting for legislation in their favor.
His votes included supporting over $80 Billion in tax credits for data center companies, slashing health care access for thousands of Wisconsinites, blocking life-saving medicine to be part of lower drug pricing negotiations, and cutting billions of dollars in green energy investments. All of this in support of his billionaire supporters and DC elites.
Derrick Van Orden is complicit in the corruption of the Trump Administration and he has multiple corruption allegations of his own. It is time to take action to stop the corruption in Washington. It is time to vote for Rebecca Cooke.
