Group sues GOP lawmakers for blocking it on Twitter

MADISON – The liberal group One Wisconsin Now has sued three GOP lawmakers for blocking it on Twitter.

In its lawsuit in federal court in Madison on Tuesday, One Wisconsin Now argued the three — Assembly Speaker Robin Vos of Rochester, Rep. John Nygren of Marinette and Rep. Jesse Kremer of Kewaskum — were violating its First Amendment rights by blocking it on Twitter.

The lawmakers cannot use the platform to present their public policy views and then prevent opponents from challenging those views, the group argued.

“Free speech isn’t just for the people or organizations whom they like or with whom they agree,” One Wisconsin’s executive director, Scot Ross, said in a statement.

In tweets and an interview, Kremer on Wednesday said Twitter comments from One Wisconsin Now amounted to “spam” and were sometimes disrespectful, such as when it mocked him for his belief the earth is 6,000 years old.

Kremer said he engages with critics more than many lawmakers but would not tolerate certain types of posts.

“It’s not an open, public forum where anyone can say whatever they want,” he said.

He said he had not blocked any of his constituents, who are his intended audience.

“It’s not for Dane County liberals to carry on conversations with me,” he said.

Another Republican and frequent Twitter user, Assembly Majority Leader Jim Steineke of Kaukauna, called the lawsuit “frivolous” in a Twitter post.

Vos and Nygren did not respond to request for comment. A spokesman for GOP Attorney General Brad Schimel also did not respond.

The lawsuit is similar to one that critics blocked by President Donald Trump brought against him in July.

By blocking One Wisconsin on Twitter, the three have prevented the group from reading their posts to find out what legislation they’re pushing. The blocks also bar the group from retweeting or commenting on their posts, which are ways that One Wisconsin could reach the same audience the lawmakers have to offer differing views.

Twitter is “a kind of digital town hall” and the three lawmakers are keeping One Wisconsin Now from participating in it, the group’s lawyer, Christa Westerberg, argued in the lawsuit.

The group is seeking a court order forcing the lawmakers to lift their blocks on One Wisconsin Now, as well as its attorneys fees.

Vos blocked One Wisconsin Now from his @repvos account in the spring, according to the lawsuit.

Kremer blocked the group from his @RepJesseKremer account this summer, a few weeks after One Wisconsin Now criticized his bill addressing protests on college campuses.

Nygren, the co-chairman of the budget-writing Joint Finance Committee, blocked the group from his @rep89 account this summer as well.

One Wisconsin Now blocks some people from its Twitter account, which some Twitter users called hypocritical. Ross said the situations weren’t comparable because his group is not a part of the government, as the lawmakers are.