Madison police chief troubled by Walker’s comments on protesters
Madison Police Chief Noble Wray said Thursday that he found comments by Gov. Scott Walker made about protesters at the state Capitol during a prank phone call “very unsettling and troubling.”
In a statement, Wray said he spent time overnight thinking about the comments Walker made during a 20-minute conversation with a Buffalo, N.Y., blogger who posed as a major Republican donor during the call.
The blogger, Ian Murphy, suggested the idea of placing troublemakers amid the crowd of protesters.
Walker responded: “The only problem with that - because we thought about that. The problem with - my only gut reaction to that would be, right now the lawmakers I’ve talked to have just completely had it with them. The public is not really fond of this.”
Wray said he was disturbed that Walker thought about planting troublemakers among peaceful protesters.
“I would like to hear more of an explanation from Governor Walker as to what exactly was being considered, and to what degree it was discussed by his cabinet members. I find it very unsettling and troubling that anyone would consider creating safety risks for our citizens and law enforcement officers,” the chief said.