Scott Walker called out for religious post on Twitter, Facebook

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is the focus of a complaint from the Madison-based Freedom From Religion Foundation, which says the Republican governor or someone associated with his official social media accounts posted a reference to a Bible verse.

FFRF complained that on March 16 that Walker’s official Facebook and Twitter accounts contained the post: “Philippians 4:13,” which is a Bible verse that says, “I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me.”

FFRF is a watchdog group that monitors for violations of separation of church and state. It claims 20,000 members nationwide and 1,300 members in Wisconsin.

On March 18, the organization sent Walker a letter that said it’s “improper for a state employee, much less for the chief executive officer of the state, to use the machinery of the state of Wisconsin to promote personal religious views.”

Co-presidents Annie Laurie Gaylor and Dan Barker, in the letter, said Walker’s tweet “seems more like a threat, or the utterance of a theocratic dictator, than of a duly elected civil servant.”

The letter referred to court cases that prohibit government officials from endorsing religion over non-religion. Also, the FFRF said if a department head or ordinary employee were to use state resources to promote personal beliefs, they would most certainly be admonished.

The letter concluded, “On behalf of our membership, we ask you to immediately delete this religious message from your official gubernatorial Facebook and Twitter. May we hear from you at your earliest convenience?”

As of March 25, the posts remained on the governor’s accounts.