Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker needs to produce some evidence
If you believe what's in Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's new book, Walker is a terrifically brave man and the protesters against his union-busting policies are dangerous thugs. Emphasis on "if you believe." In one book excerpt making the rounds, Walker describes a scary incident with protesters after a manufacturing plant visit that
Politico reports occurred in February 2011.
Fox News reports:
“As we prepared to leave, the state troopers saw that the protesters had physically blocked the entrance we had used to come onto the property. So they turned the squad car around and headed toward the other exit. We watched in disbelief as the throng of people rushed toward the second exit to block our path,” writes Walker, a potential 2016 presidential candidate.
“As we tried to pull out, they surrounded the car and began beating on the windows and rocking the vehicle. Just as we extricated ourselves from their grip, a truck pulled up and blocked our path, playing a game of chicken with the troopers. They turned the lights and sirens on warning them to get out of the way. Eventually he backed up, and we sped off,” he continued.
Considering the attention focused on Walker and Wisconsin in early 2011, and a right-wing media eager to draw attention to stories like that, you might think that incident would have been widely reported at the time. But if it was, good luck finding those reports. Searches of Nexis and Google turn up quite a few protests outside Walker's manufacturing plant visits, but no state police cars being rocked. In
Hudson, Wisconsin, in March 2011, for instance:
A chorus of boos changed to chants of "Shame" by dozens of people as Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker entered a Hudson, Wis., factory Tuesday afternoon. [...]
After touring the factory that employs about 35 people, Walker left through a side door as protesters chanted "Shame" and "Show your face." At that point, they had been waiting in the rain for about 45 minutes, said Jake Wyrzykowski, a recent history graduate from the University of Wisconsin-River Falls.
In
La Crosse (a town identified by one right-wing website as the site of the incident in the book), also in March 2011:
Walker spoke to media and a handful of employees at Colgan Air services during the half-hour stop. A crowd that had gathered outside jeered “coward” as his airplane taxied away from the hangar.
“I wish he would have come outside to see the people opposed,” said John Bayer, one of several La Crosse firefighters who joined the protest.
If Walker's state police car was surrounded and rocked at either of these events, local media sure wasn't reporting it. But if protests like these, and the ones described below the fold,
were reported, you'd think something like Walker's book describes would turn up in a search. If he's telling the truth, of course.
Hobart, February 2011:
[Betsy Kippers, vice president of the Wisconsin Education Association Council] was stationed Tuesday outside of Centerline Machining & Grinding in Hobart with about 20 other protesters, where Walker stopped during a statewide tour to defend his proposal amid the backlash.
The caption on an image with that story reports that "Protestors shout slogans at Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker's car as he exits Centerline Machining and Grinding in Hobart." Which involves February, a manufacturing plant, and Scott Walker's car, but otherwise falls
just a little short of a throng of people blocking an entrance, rocking a car, and blocking escape with a truck.
Eau Claire, March 2011:
Many protesters, still furious over Walker’s union reform, lined the streets in front of the Minnesota Wire facility.
Green Bay, March 2011:
Just a handful of protesters turned up outside the company for the governor's departure.
There you have five different contemporary accounts of protests at Walker's travels around the state, none of which come close to his story. If Walker's story is true, it should not be hard for him to produce at least local reporting from when it happened. And national media now should not be reporting stories like this without asking some questions, especially given all the things we know Walker's book
leaves out.