INDIANAPOLIS — The office of an Indiana state senator is responding after his name appeared on a membership list for the Oath Keepers.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, the Oath Keepers is one of the largest far-right anti-government groups in the U.S.
State Senator Scott Baldwin's name appeared in a ProPublica article that listed state lawmakers, congressional candidates, and local government and GOP officials who are on the group's roster. ProPublica says a list of more than 35,000 members of the Oath Keepers was obtained by an anonymous hacker and shared with them by the whistleblower group "Distributed Denial of Secrets."
Baldwin represents District 20, which includes parts of Hamilton County.
Baldwin's press secretary released the following comment from him to WRTV:
“I initially had no recollection or familiarity with the organization, but have since discovered that back in April 2010, more than 11 years ago, when I was running for county sheriff, an advocate for the organization described it to me as a 2nd Amendment rights group, and I donated $30. I haven’t had any interaction or communication since. Recent media reports indicate that the group has changed significantly since its founding in 2009.”
