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Ryan Fournier
Born (1995-12-08) December 8, 1995 (age 28)
Long Branch, New Jersey, U.S.
EducationCampbell University
Occupation(s)Political activist, writer
Years active2012–present
OrganizationStudents for Trump
Political partyRepublican
Websiteryanfournier.com

Ryan Fournier (born December 8, 1995) is an American conservative activist and political commentator best known as the co-founder and acting national chairman of the American youth group Students for Trump.

Early life and education

Fournier was born in Long Branch, New Jersey, on December 8, 1995, and spent his formative years in Clayton, North Carolina.[1]

Career

Fournier became politically active following his volunteer work for the Mitt Romney 2012 presidential campaign.[2] Prior to launching Students for Trump, Fournier was involved in various local and state political campaigns within North Carolina. Along with being the co-chairman of Students for Trump, Fournier also serves as the President of OpenPoll and xStrategies.[3]

In July 2018, Fournier launched a boycott against Walmart for selling shirts labeled "Impeach 45," which resulted in the hashtag #BoycottWalmart trending on Twitter.[4] Walmart pulled the items from its online store, issuing the following statement: "These items were sold by third-party sellers on our open marketplace, and were not offered directly by Walmart. We're removing these types of items pending review of our marketplace policies."[4]

Students for Trump

In 2015, Fournier and John Lambert launched Students for Trump as a Twitter account while they were studying at Campbell University in Buies Creek, NC. Within a year, the group had nearly 300 campus chapters and a considerable social media following.[5]

In May 2021, The Daily Beast reported that Fournier testified against long-time friend and co-founder of Students for Trump, John Lambert, in a case where the latter was accused of setting up a fictional New York law firm to pose as experienced attorneys and scam clients.[6] Lambert was sentenced to 13 months in jail for multiple counts of wire fraud.[7] Lambert's defense attorney has named Fournier as the co-conspirator in the case, suggesting that Lambert and Fournier used various gig sites to market themselves as licensed attorneys.[6][8]

Views

In a since-deleted Facebook post on June 11, 2020, Fournier claimed that donations to Black Lives Matter were being funneled to Democratic campaigns through ActBlue, a Democratic Super PAC.[9] Similar allegations were made by other conservative commentators, such as Candace Owens and the Hodgetwins.[10] The Associated Press and fact-checking website PolitiFact rated the claim to be false.[10][11]

In a tweet dated January 31, 2021, Fournier claimed that the 'Biden administration lost 20 million COVID vaccines...".[12] According to PolitiFact, the Biden administration wasn't responsible for losing the vaccines and that the distribution infrastructure under which these vaccines went missing were set up during the Trump administration. PolitiFact rated Fournier's allegations on the missing vaccines as false.[12]

On April 20, Fournier shared a Facebook post with an image reading "Derek Chauvin did not a get a fair trial". The statement was later retracted as an opinion. USA Today fact-checked Fournier's statement and considered it as missing context and ignoring the steps taken to ensure the trial was held in a due and fair manner.[13]

References

  1. ^ Chason, Rachel (September 27, 2016). "National 'Students for Trump' effort has NC roots". The News & Observer. Archived from the original on October 1, 2016.
  2. ^ Katz, Celeste (June 2, 2016). "Meet the 20-Year-Old Mastermind Behind Students For Trump". Mic. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  3. ^ Fournier, Ryan (October 15, 2019). "Ryan Fournier - Official Website". Ryan Fournier. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Walmart removes 'Impeach 45' apparel after online outrage, calls for boycott". TODAY.com. July 3, 2018. Retrieved April 4, 2021.
  5. ^ Markay, Lachlan (February 27, 2018). "Pro-Trump College Group Won't Tell the Feds What the Hell It's Doing". The Daily Beast. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  6. ^ a b Sommer, Will. "Students for Trump Founder Ryan Fournier Ratted Out Friend To Feds". The Daily Beast. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  7. ^ Schreckinger, Ben (May 9, 2019). "He Founded 'Students for Trump.' Now He Could Face Jail Time for Impersonating a Lawyer". POLITICO Magazine. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  8. ^ Brown, Stephen Rex. "Students for Trump founder John Lambert sentenced to 13 months for posing as lawyer". New York Daily News. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
  9. ^ Jacobson, Louis. "Fact-check: Do donations to Black Lives Matter go to a 'Democrat Super PAC'?". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  10. ^ a b Funke, Daniel (June 12, 2020). "Conservative pundits share false claim about Black Lives Matter, ActBlue". PolitiFact. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  11. ^ "Link on Black Lives Matter website does not donate directly to DNC". Associated Press. June 12, 2020. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  12. ^ a b Kim, Noah Y. (February 1, 2021). "Biden administration didn't lose 20 million COVID-19 vaccines". PolitiFact. Retrieved April 3, 2021.
  13. ^ Rouan, Rick. "Fact check: Missing context in claim questioning whether Derek Chauvin received fair trial". USA Today. Retrieved May 18, 2021.
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