Waukesha GOP Chair Praises Extremist's Propaganda Efforts
A top-ranking local Republican Party official in Waukesha County, Wisconsin, told a white supremacist making a propaganda film about his city that he 鈥渟upport[s] what you鈥檙e doing.鈥�
Terry Dittrich, the chairman of Waukesha County Republican Party and a longtime Republican operative, granted the phone interview to white supremacist Trey Garrison聽during an interview spot in an online propaganda film. The film framed a Nov. 21, 2021, vehicular attack against Christmas paradegoers in Waukesha, Wisconsin, as an act of 鈥渁nti-white terrorism.鈥�
鈥淭his guy hates white people, and he wanted to kill them,鈥� Dittrich told Garrison in the documentary, which the Patriot Front-linked extremist outfit Media2Rise released on Feb. 8.
The 鈥済uy鈥� to whom Dittrich referred is Darrell Brooks, who awaits trial on 77 charges in connection to an apparent car-ramming incident at a Christmas parade that left six people dead and dozens injured. Brooks pleaded not guilty to the charges on Feb. 11 and has remained in jail on a $5 million bail. He last appeared in court on March 11 after his lawyers filed a change-of-venue motion.
Hatewatch does not know if Dittrich knew about Garrison鈥檚 connections to the white supremacist movement at the time he agreed to the interview. Hatewatch reached out to Dittrich twice via an email address on the Wisconsin GOP鈥檚 website to inquire whether he was aware the interview would be used in a documentary. Hatewatch asked Dittrich if he knew that white nationalists, including a 聽for allegedly attacking anti-racist protesters, ran Media2Rise, the company that produced the documentary. Dittrich did not respond. Hatewatch also reached out to Wisconsin GOP chairman Paul Farrow over email, and he did not immediately respond either.
Garrison, a racist podcaster and troll who for years harassed women and people of color through his internet pseudonym Spectre, once referred to Black people as 鈥渘ature鈥檚 clowns,鈥� and has compared people of color to insects. (Garrison confirmed his involvement in the white nationalist movement to Hatewatch at the time.) The Texan turned Pennsylvanian extremist also writes for the white nationalist website National Justice and, along with a handful of extremists, including members of Media2Rise, traveled to Waukesha in order to 鈥渓aunch an investigation鈥� into the Nov. 21 incident.
Dittrich suggested to Garrison in a phone conversation included in Media2Rise鈥檚 propaganda film that he believed Brooks was being motivated by a hatred of white people. Dittrich cited Facebook posts and rap songs that he attributed to Brooks, claiming that 鈥渋t鈥檚 very clear that he wanted to kill white people.鈥�
Far-right propagandists, including internet personality , attempted to tie Brooks to Black Lives Matter in the aftermath of the violence, based upon social media posts wherein he promoted the movement. Police have not identified a motive. Local news reports stated that charging documents cited a possible domestic incident prior to the attack.
鈥淲e鈥檙e still in a point of grieving in this county. To have a Republican leader, the number one Republican leader, come out and start talking about whether this guy was a racist. 鈥� I mean, I am of the firm belief that we will have time to talk about that. We are going to. We are not going to shy away from it. But I want to let the criminal justice system and law enforcement do their job. I support what you鈥檙e doing, but I think it would be inflammatory for me right now. Maybe in a couple of weeks it鈥檇 be a different story, but right now it could be inflammatory for me to come out,鈥� Dittrich added in footage included in the propaganda film.
Garrison described his discussion with Dittrich in a December 2021 podcast with National Justice editor Joseph Jordan, who Hatewatch previously reported uses the alias Eric Striker online. Though he didn鈥檛 cite Dittrich by name, Garrison recalled an interview with a 鈥渟enior county Republican official.鈥� He crowed that Dittrich 鈥渙pened up to us.鈥�
鈥淗e put his neck out, and he should be proud of himself,鈥� Garrison said.
Dittrich also promoted conspiratorial thinking around the Nov. 21 attack in a podcast hosted by the anti-人兽性交 American Family Association聽(AFA). Speaking with Sandy Rios, AFA鈥檚 director of governmental affairs, Dittrich attempted to draw a connection between Brooks鈥� alleged crime and protests against Kyle Rittenhouse鈥檚 acquittal. A court acquitted Rittenhouse on Nov. 19, two days prior to the Christmas parade. Even though authorities have not said that the acquittal related to Brooks鈥� alleged crimes, Dittrich told Rios, 鈥淚t would lead any normal person to deduce that there may be a connection here with what took place in Kenosha.鈥�
鈥淎s far as I鈥檓 concerned Waukesha, from a political standpoint, is definitely the target of Democrats and the left,鈥� he told Rios. 鈥淚 don鈥檛 want to go any further than that, to say that they would condone or there were any individuals who are, you know, there specifically for a violent type of target.鈥�
As chairman of the Waukesha County GOP, Dittrich worked with Trump鈥檚 2020 presidential campaign to mobilize Republican voters, according to a 聽from Reuters. Following Biden鈥檚 electoral win in November 2020, Dittrich pushed the anti-democracy 鈥淪top the Steal鈥� conspiracy, which claimed that Trump, not Biden, won the election. In a January 2021 article in The Economist, Dittrich claimed the 2020 election was 鈥渁bsolutely fraudulent鈥� and that 鈥渢here is no way Biden outperformed Barack Obama in Waukesha County.鈥�
These allegations of voter fraud have buttressed the party鈥檚 efforts to crack down on voting rights throughout the state. This includes a pair of bills, which Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evans has since vetoed, that would make it more difficult to cast absentee ballots and limit the number of ballot drop boxes.
Photo illustration by 人兽性交
