He Came to Preach, Not to Answer. And When Challenged, He Folded Like a Gas Station Umbrella in a Wind Tunnel. (full research package)
Tonight, Mark Pocan wandered into Derick Van Orden’s district thinking he was about to play hero in some kind of moral revival. Instead, he left as the lead actor in a low-budget political tragedy—one where the script collapsed, and the lead couldn’t even improvise his way through basic biology.
What was billed as a community town hall turned out to be a taxpayer-funded therapy session for liberal activists, bankrolled by a string of Democrat-aligned dark money outfits. Let’s call it what it was: a campaign rally with props, dressed up as “constituent engagement.”
Groups like Climate Power, Protect Our Care, Working Families Power, Opportunity Wisconsin, and the Committee to Protect Health Care didn’t show up to educate—they showed up to insulate Pocan from real questions and hand him a megaphone to parrot their talking points.
But even their millions couldn’t protect him from one unapproved, unscripted moment:
I asked Mark, right after he said to demand “direct answers” from Rep. Van Orden, “What is a woman?”
The moment those words left my mouth, Pocan’s bravado evaporated. This man talks tough online like he’s the bouncer of the progressive movement, but when challenged on the most basic biological concept in a live room, he locked up. Silence. He had nothing—not even a talking point to hide behind.
This wasn’t leadership. This was retreat. And it was funded to the tune of $15,753,507 in federally reported political spending supporting Democrats or attacking Republicans by just three of the seven sponsoring groups:
- Climate Power Action: $10,060,000 – funneled directly to Democrat super PACs like Future Forward USA
- Working Families Party PAC: $5,275,392 – funding Democratic candidates and attacking GOP ones
- Committee to Protect Health Care PAC: $418,115 – supporting Kamala Harris and other Democrats
The remaining four groups—Opportunity Wisconsin, Main Street Alliance, Protect Our Care, and Family Friendly Wisconsin—have state-level operations or operate as 501(c)(4) dark money projects that don’t disclose full financials. Translation? There’s more money—you just can’t see it.
And when it comes to endorsements? These groups went all in on Democrats:
- Climate Power: Endorsed Biden
- Working Families Party: Kamala Harris + 7 Senate Dems + 16 House Dems + numerous at the state level
- Committee to Protect Health Care: Harris + a parade of Democratic House and Senate names
- Main Street Alliance: 4 Wisconsin Democrat state candidates
Not one Republican. Not one independent candidate outside the Democratic orbit.
So let’s not pretend this town hall was about engaging all voices. This was a choreographed partisan performance, bought and paid for by a network of Democrat-friendly PACs and nonprofits that fund candidates like Pocan, protect them from scrutiny, and applaud them when they say absolutely nothing.
Tonight wasn’t a win for civic engagement. It was a win for the illusion of it.
Wisconsin deserves better than a pre-packaged politician who goes mute when confronted with reality, but finds his voice when he’s surrounded by donors and cheerleaders. Mark Pocan showed us who he really is tonight.
