Says his sons were "targeted" on Facebook "by out-of-state protesters."
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Wisconsin recall target Gov. Scott Walker says teen sons "targeted" on Facebook
When Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker said his two teen sons have been "targeted" on Facebook, the news was quickly picked up by the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel and national outlets such as Fox News, Politico, Talking Points Memo, the Daily Beast and the Huffington Post.
Walker didn't elaborate on his claim in the April 4, 2012 interview with the Christian Broadcasting Network.
But in a March 31, 2012 speech to the Waukesha County Republican Party in suburban Milwaukee, he disclosed a few more details:
"People ask me all the time: How do you do deal with all the grief? How do you deal with the thousands of people who were bused in in front of your house in Wauwatosa? How do you deal with the hecklers, how do you deal with attacks? The kids had stuff on Facebook targeted after them by out-of-state protesters and other things like that."
The first-term Republican governor has repeatedly claimed that out-of-state interests backed public demonstrations against him and are promoting efforts to remove him from office in the June 5, 2012 recall election. And after Walker stripped most Wisconsin public employees of most collective bargaining powers with a March 2011 law that spurred the demonstrations and the recall, Republican politicians as well as Democrats who opposed the law received death threats.
In November 2011, authorities investigated but did not file charges against a woman who posted a message about Walker on Facebook saying: "Rather than recall him. can we kill him instead? Just curious." And a Madison radio talk show host in November 2011 criticized Walker’s wife, Tonette, and called her names when she said on Milwaukee radio that she worried for her sons’ safety after protesters demonstrated outside of their home.
Facebook claim
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But Walker saying family members have been targeted on Facebook is a new dimension.
Walker campaign spokeswoman Ciara Matthews pointed to a December 2011 article by the MacIver Institute, a conservative think tank and news organization in Madison.
The article said that on Nov. 27, 2011, Miles Kristan posted this message (complete with the grammatical errors) on Facebook:
"Whats it like having the most hated dad in Wisconsin ??? this kid knows."
A picture accompanying the article shows the post, which included a link to Matt Walker's Facebook page; the link included a photo of Matt Walker.
According to the article, after posting the item about Matt Walker, Kristan immediately posted another message saying "this kid knows as well," with a link to Alex Walker's Facebook page.
Both posts were also shown in a news report on WTMJ-TV (Channel 4) in Milwaukee.
So, there is evidence that Walker's sons, both of whom attend a public high school in suburban Milwaukee, were "targeted" at least one time on Facebook.
Matthews did not provide other examples.
We also contacted Jocelyn Webster, a spokeswoman for the Wisconsin Capitol Police. She told us the department does not comment on security issues.
As for Kristan, he is a protester, but he’s not from out of state.
Kristan has been identified in news reports as a Wisconsin resident and a native of Racine, south of Milwaukee, who moved to Madison to participate in protests against Walker. He was also identified as a leader of some of the protests.
State court records list Kristan with Wisconsin addresses dating back to 2003 and as recently as February 2012. They also show he was convicted of misdemeanor disorderly conduct after pouring a beer on state Rep. Robin Vos, R-Rochester, in a Madison bar in September 2011.
Our rating
Walker said his sons were "targeted" on Facebook "by out-of-state protesters." A protester posted two critical messages on Facebook, one directed at Matt Walker and one at Alex Walker, but the protester is from Wisconsin.
We rate Walker's statement Half True.
Our Sources
Christian Broadcasting Network, "Exclusive: Scott Walker says his sons 'targeted on Facebook' over recall effort," April 4, 2012
Interview and email interview, Scott Walker campaign spokeswoman Ciara Matthews, April 9 and 11, 2012
MacIver Institute, "'Pink dress guy,' infamous beer thrower, now targeting Gov. Walker's children in online taunt," Dec. 1, 2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Many citations against Capitol protesters dismissed," Oct. 8, 2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Capitol police meeting on possible protests," June 3, 2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Racine man cited in beer incident with lawmaker," Sept. 16, 2011
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Woman won’t be charged in Walker posting," Nov. 17, 2011
Journal Times, "Racine native turns self in over Vos beer-pouring incident," Sept. 15, 2011
PolitiFact Wisconsin, "Gov. Scott Walker says Wisconsin gave every public employee the ability to choose whether they want to be in a union," April 9, 2012
PolitiFact Wisconsin, "Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker says out-of-staters account for ‘almost all’ in Madison protests," Feb. 23, 2011
YouTube.com, "Scott Walker Part 1," (at 5:30) posted April 3, 2012
Wisconsin Circuit Court Access, Miles Kristan court cases
WTMJ-TV, "Protesters targeting Governor Walker’s kids," Dec. 2, 2011
Email interview, MacIver Institute communications director Brian Fraley, April 11, 2012
Interview, Wisconsin Department of Administration spokesman Jocelyn Webster, April 11, 2012
Email interview, Gov. Scott Walker spokesman Cullen Werwie, April 13, 2012
WTDY-FM, Sly in the Morning segment about Tonette Walker, Nov. 17, 2011
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Wisconsin recall target Gov. Scott Walker says teen sons "targeted" on Facebook
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