The woman who says Herschel Walker paid for their abortion is also reportedly the mother of his child
Hershel Walker, the former NFL star and current Republican Senate nominee in Georgia, told Fox News host Brian Kilmeade on Wednesday morning that he doesn't know the identity of the woman who says he urged her to get an abortion in 2009 then reimbursed her for the procedure. "There's a good reason the woman finds that defense highly doubtful: She's the mother of one of his children," The Daily Beast reported Wednesday night.
Walker, who says he supports abortion bans with no exceptions, has firmly denied paying for an abortion and calls the woman's allegation a "flat-out lie."
The woman told The Daily Beast she was "stunned" by Walker's disavowal, "but I guess it also doesn't shock me, that maybe there are just so many of us that he truly doesn't remember. ... But then again, if he really forgot about it, that says something, too."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
The woman said her years-long relationship with Walker continued after the 2009 abortion, and when she got pregnant years later, she decided to keep the child even though, she told The Daily Beast, Walker said it still wasn't "a convenient time" for him to have another child. "He didn't accept responsibility for the kid we did have together, and now he isn't accepting responsibility for the one that we didn't have," she said. "And now he wants to take that choice away from other women and couples entirely."
Many prominent Republicans rallied behind Walker, some — like former President Donald Trump — saying they believe his denial, and others saying the pivotal Senate seat is too important to abandon. It doesn't matter if Walker "paid some skank for an abortion," former NRA spokeswoman and conservative commentator Dana Loesch said, also referring to Walker's ex-girlfriend as "some broad." "I want to control the Senate."
Walker's campaign and a wider circle of top Georgia Republicans knew about the abortion story for months before the woman came forward, and Walker's team dismissed warnings it could torpedo his campaign, Politico reported Tuesday. They didn't deny it, "it was, 'Eh, it's not going to come out, you're being hyperbolic,'" one top Georgia GOP operative said, suggesting this is a weird hill for Walker to die on now that it's public.
"You've conceded holding a gun to your wife's head, and stalking women outside a window, and almost killing a man during road rage," the operative told Politico. "This is what you choose not to concede on when there is overwhelming evidence that this happened?"
Sign up for Today's Best Articles in your inbox
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Peter has worked as a news and culture writer and editor at The Week since the site's launch in 2008. He covers politics, world affairs, religion and cultural currents. His journalism career began as a copy editor at a financial newswire and has included editorial positions at The New York Times Magazine, Facts on File, and Oregon State University.
-
7 beautiful towns to visit in Switzerland during the holidays
The Week Recommends Find bliss in these charming Swiss locales that blend the traditional with the modern
By Catherine Garcia, The Week US Published
-
The Week contest: Werewolf bill
Puzzles and Quizzes
By The Week US Published
-
'This needs to be a bigger deal'
Instant Opinion Opinion, comment and editorials of the day
By Justin Klawans, The Week US Published
-
GOP's Mace seeks federal anti-trans bathroom ban
Speed Read Rep. Nancy Mace of South Carolina has introduced legislation to ban transgender people from using federal facilities
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Ukraine fires ATACMS, Russia ups hybrid war
Speed Read Ukraine shot U.S.-provided long-range missiles and Russia threatened retaliation
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
New York DA floats 4-year Trump sentencing freeze
Speed Read President-elect Donald Trump's sentencing is on hold, and his lawyers are pushing to dismiss the case while he's in office
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Wyoming judge strikes down abortion, pill bans
Speed Read The judge said the laws — one of which was a first-in-the-nation prohibition on the use of medication to end pregnancy — violated the state's constitution
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
US sanctions Israeli West Bank settler group
Speed Read The Biden administration has imposed sanctions on Amana, Israel's largest settlement development organization
By Rafi Schwartz, The Week US Published
-
Gaetz ethics report in limbo as sex allegations emerge
Speed Read A lawyer representing two women alleges that Matt Gaetz paid them for sex, and one witnessed him having sex with minor
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Biden allows Ukraine to hit deep in Russia
Speed Read The U.S. gave Ukraine the green light to use ATACMS missiles supplied by Washington, a decision influenced by Russia's escalation of the war with North Korean troops
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published
-
Sri Lanka's new Marxist leader wins huge majority
Speed Read The left-leaning coalition of newly elected Sri Lankan President Anura Kumara Dissanayake won 159 of the legislature's 225 seats
By Peter Weber, The Week US Published