The making of Scott Walker, statesman [here come the long knives]

Washington Post ^ | Philip Rucker and Robert Costa

[Cincinatus' Wife]

On a recent Monday at Washington’s Willard InterContinental Hotel, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker was schooled on the world by some of the GOP’s leading foreign-policy lights. In a two-hour tutorial, seated around a table in the Taft Room sipping sodas and coffee, they used detailed regional maps to lead the likely presidential candidate on a tour of the globe’s hot spots: Israel and the Middle East, Latin America, Russia and Ukraine.​

The reason for Walker’s crash course was urgent: He has not impressed many leading Republicans with his grasp of foreign affairs. He drew mockery from members of both parties last month for refusing to talk about foreign policy on a trip to London and then for comparing his experience battling labor protesters to taking on Islamic State terrorists.

In contrast to the compelling and confident way Walker talks about his Wisconsin record, he has been shaky on foreign policy. He has traveled only rarely overseas and showed little interest in world politics in college or as governor. Policy experts and donors who have met with him privately said he lacks depth of knowledge about the international scene and speaks mostly in generalities. At a Club for Growth meeting last weekend, one major donor publicly portrayed Walker as “not prepared” to talk about global issues.....

Walker hired Michael J. Gallagher, 31, an former Marine captain and Senate Foreign Relations Committee staffer, as his foreign-policy aide. Gallagher has moved to Madison and began work this week.

Gallagher is little known outside of Capitol Hill. The Green Bay, Wis., native is still a PhD student at Georgetown University. “He just sent me some draft chapters for his thesis,” professor Andrew Bennett, Gallagher’s adviser, said this week......

[Diana in Wisconsin]

Get off our thread, Newb. Go start your own Anti-Walker Ping List and we’ll come pester YOU.

(Well, actually we have MANNERS, so we won’t...)

[Colonel_Flagg]

There’s nothing wrong with admitting that Scott Walker is the second-best potential Republican candidate for President, behind Ted Cruz.

[Beagle8U]

Yep, he might even quit before he gets that PhD!!!

[johniegrad]

He has traveled only rarely overseas

The sure sign of a liberal.

Somehow they believe that traveling somewhere is actually an education about that place's people, politics, culture, etc.

Having both traveled overseas and lived overseas, it is my experience that traveling is inferior to living as far as gaining experience.

I think this liberal bias comes from taking week long vacations elsewhere and subsequently declaring oneself "expert" on that basis.

[WIBamian]

Point taken. However, the manipulation of the H1-B visa hiring process by Chamber of Amnesty companies to hire foreign labor by ignoring skill-worthy American citizens is well documented.

More importantly, it seems you do not think that America is finally at the point of no return. I do. My advocacy is for American citizens, not illegal invaders. I am not wasting my vote on a political candidate that will not take action to secure the well-being of American citizens because they do not want to "spend the political capital on a venture like this".

To continue the status quo, of not doing what is required to protect us, like the other governors do in other red states, is not enough, not anymore.

America is in dire peril. My job, your job, other Freeper's jobs can be taken by one of the 100 million invaders coming to our neighborhoods.

The rising tide of Obama and RINOS to create an illegal nation within America's borders has already started.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

: )

[Cincinatus' Wife]

You noticed! LoL!

Did you see what he HAS done?

http://www.cnas.org/MichaelGallagher

[Cincinatus' Wife]

You make a good point.

The universities go gaga over their semester abroad programs - or semester at sea program (with a stop in Cuba).

[WIBamian]

Hilly will absolutely not be president. Ted Cruz will be our next President of the United States. (Gosh, I really do like how that sounds, almost Reagan-like). Yes, Ted Cruz will finally be our nation’s Miracle on Liberty!

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Liberals didn’t mind at all Obama’s lack of experience in foreign policy when he ran for President.

It's classic msm.

[Beagle8U]

Yep, looks like Walker knows how to pick a team.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Walker's campaign site: Our American Revival - Good opening video and Ronald Reagan quote:

"It is my intention to curb the size and influence of the Federal establishment and to demand recognition of the distinction between the powers granted to the Federal Government and those reserved to the States or to the people. All of us need to be reminded that the Federal Government did not create the States; the States created the Federal Government." - President Ronald Reagan, January 20, 1981

Scott Walker on Twitter

[WIBamian]

Cincinatus’s Wife, I guess my keeness for parlaying wits and written expression over political issues is one that I cannot ignore...

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Walker will be prepared.

[Erik Latranyi]

If all you Cruz supporters can do is to try and tear down decent conservatives, then I want nothing to do with you.

You act as low as liberals.

[SZonian]

We’ve played this game on FR before...circular firing squad.

Sorry, not going there this time nor any other time.

[WIBamian]

Walker went soft on gay marriage, when he refused to fight back against the judicial activism that supports the deviant fornicating of childless men.

This is why I like the Free Republic, because it advocates that traditional marriage IS THE ONLY STANDARD for Conservatives.

[Cincinatus' Wife]

Welcome to FR newbie.

What took you so long to “like” FR?

[WIBamian]

So we are supposed to ignore Walker's RECORD on amnesty?

Let him say whatever, just to garner votes from American citizens that would not have voted for him if they had known what he did and said about illegal invaders?

[Yosemitest]

I quote Scott Walker and his PRO-AMNESTY position:

Endorses path to citizenship for immigrant workers

Scott Walker distanced himself from House Republicans debating a new immigration bill by endorsing a path to citizenship for immigrant workers.Walker acknowledged that a substantial number of Wisconsin farms depend on migrant workers, some of them here illegally.
He also was sharply critical of how difficult the federal government makes it for those workers to come to this country.
"If people want to come here and work hard and benefit, I don't care whether they come from Mexico or Ireland or Germany or Canada or South Africa or anywhere else," he said.
"I want them here."
The Democratic-led U.S. Senate passed an immigration bill last week that features a path to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants already in the U.S.
Many conservative House Republicans oppose the bill, viewing it as rewarding law-breakers.
He said as a gubernatorial candidate in 2010 that he would sign an Arizona-style bill, which would allow local police to stop suspected illegal immigrants.
Source: Wisconsin Rapids Tribune, "Endorses path to citizenship" , Jul 3, 2013

Make it easier to enter the country legally

Walker said he is in favor of the Senate immigration bill--that features a path to citizenship--but called it a backward "Band-Aid" approach,
saying elected leaders should make it easier for people to enter the country and become legal citizens in the first place.
"Not only do they need to fix things for people already here, or find some way to do it, there's got to be a larger way to fix the system in the first place," he said.
"Because if it wasn't so cumbersome, if there wasn't such a long wait, if it wasn't so difficult to get in, we wouldn't have the other problems that we have (with people living here illegally)," he said.
Walker's stance on immigration reform evolved over the years.
Source: Wisconsin Rapids Tribune, "Endorses path to citizenship" , Jul 3, 2013

2010: stop suspected illegals; 2012: that's a distraction

Walker's stance on immigration reform evolved over the years.
He said as a gubernatorial candidate in 2010 that he would sign an Arizona-style bill, which would allow local police to stop suspected illegal immigrants, if he were elected.
Then, in December 2012, Walker said he no longer favored such a bill, telling reporters that such legislation would become a "huge distraction" from accomplishing his agenda for the state.
Today, Walker said he would support a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants under some circumstances.
Source: Wisconsin Rapids Tribune, "Endorses path to citizenship" , Jul 3, 2013