Republicans rally behind Herschel Walker after report he paid for abortion
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
You are now subscribed
Your newsletter sign-up was successful
As problems continued to brew Tuesday for Herschel Walker, the GOP's Senate candidate in Georgia, Republicans flocked to stand behind him following a controversy over an alleged abortion that he paid for.
While Walker has pushed a staunch pro-life, anti-abortion platform throughout his campaign, a new report published by The Daily Beast alleges that he once paid for the abortion of a woman he had gotten pregnant. The woman told The Daily Beast that Walker pressured her into getting an abortion following the 2009 pregnancy, and the outlet said the woman provided them with a copy of the receipt from the abortion clinic, as well as an image of a signed $700 check and a "get well" card from Walker.
The Daily Beast claims to have corroborated these details, and The New York Times reported that some Republicans had privately "feared" his abortion story would get out. Despite this, Walker called the woman's story "a flat-out lie" — and Republicans across the party soon came to his defense.
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.
This included Sen. Rick Scott (R-Fla.), the chair of the National Republican Senatorial Committee (NRSC), who said "Herschel has denied these allegations and the NRSC and Republicans stand with him."
Others, including the NRSC's communications director, Chris Hartline, blamed the Democrats for "[stirring] up nonsense about what has or hasn't happened in Herschel Walker's past."
Perhaps the most prominent Republican to back up Walker, though, was former President Donald Trump. In a statement, Trump claimed Walker "is being slandered and maligned by the Fake News Media and obviously, the Democrats."
FiveThirtyEight is reporting that Walker remains neck and neck with his opponent, Sen. Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.).
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
Justin Klawans has worked as a staff writer at The Week since 2022. He began his career covering local news before joining Newsweek as a breaking news reporter, where he wrote about politics, national and global affairs, business, crime, sports, film, television and other news. Justin has also freelanced for outlets including Collider and United Press International.
-
Can Europe regain its digital sovereignty?Today’s Big Question EU is trying to reduce reliance on US Big Tech and cloud computing in face of hostile Donald Trump, but lack of comparable alternatives remains a worry
-
The Mandelson files: Labour Svengali’s parting gift to StarmerThe Explainer Texts and emails about Mandelson’s appointment as US ambassador could fuel biggest political scandal ‘for a generation’
-
Magazine printables - February 13, 2026Puzzle and Quizzes Magazine printables - February 13, 2026
-
Trump sues IRS for $10B over tax record leaksSpeed Read The president is claiming ‘reputational and financial harm’ from leaks of his tax information between 2018 and 2020
-
Trump, Senate Democrats reach DHS funding dealSpeed Read The deal will fund most of the government through September and the Department of Homeland Security for two weeks
-
Fed holds rates steady, bucking Trump pressureSpeed Read The Federal Reserve voted to keep its benchmark interest rate unchanged
-
Judge slams ICE violations amid growing backlashSpeed Read ‘ICE is not a law unto itself,’ said a federal judge after the agency violated at least 96 court orders
-
Rep. Ilhan Omar attacked with unknown liquidSpeed Read This ‘small agitator isn’t going to intimidate me from doing my work’
-
Democrats pledge Noem impeachment if not firedSpeed Read Trump is publicly defending the Homeland Security secretary
-
The billionaires’ wealth tax: a catastrophe for California?Talking Point Peter Thiel and Larry Page preparing to change state residency
-
Hegseth moves to demote Sen. Kelly over videospeed read Retired Navy fighter pilot Mark Kelly appeared in a video reminding military service members that they can ‘refuse illegal orders’
