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Gov. Scott Walker, shown here speaking at Chatham House in London on Feb. 11, 2015, was a central figure in out most-clicked items that month. (AP photo)
The surging national interest in Gov. Scott Walker (at least among political junkies) helped drive readers to our Walker-related articles in February 2015.
In our High Five for the month -- fact checks and other items that received the most page-views -- Walker was a central figure in four of them.
The focus on Walker’s possible run for the presidency even generated interest going back in time.
So, let’s get to the five.
This article was published in December 2013. But, perhaps not surprisingly, it took on new life with readers as Walker climbed the list of potential Republican contenders for 2016.
The article gets at why Walker left Marquette University back in 1990 without a degree and his early runs for elective office.
This fact check is the latest to get one of our Pants on Fire ratings.
Walker chalked up to a "drafting error" fundamental changes made in his state budget to the language describing the Wisconsin Idea in the University of Wisconsin System's mission statement.
We found that the edits were purposeful.
This was one our In Context articles, where we give context to statements that get widespread attention.
Limbaugh drew controversy when he suggested that Walker, when asked about why he left Marquette, should simply say he dropped out in order to avoid being "accused of rape" someday.
Percentages associated with the budget cuts for the UW System proposed in Walker’s 2015-’17 state budget were as high as 16 percent and as low as 2.5 percent.
This article explained how neither figure, nor one in between, were necessarily the most credible. We found that a fourth figure -- a 6 percent reduction -- took into account the overall size of the system’s budget, the portion that comes from the state and restrictions on what can be done with certain funds.
We found that, in fact, the bill -- which would block companies and workers from signing labor contracts that require employees to pay union dues -- would apply to the NFL Players Association, the union that represents Packers players.
But our rating, on a claim made by Democratic state Sen. Jon Erpenbach, was Mostly True. We found it’s not clear the bill would have any noticeable effect on the players union.
To see all of our Truth-O-Meter ratings on statements by, or about, Walker, go here.
And go here to see our Walk-O-Meter, which tracks Walker’s campaign promises.
Our Sources
PolitiFact Wisconsin items as noted
