OKLAHOMA CITY — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker received thunderous applause and a standing ovation before he even opened his mouth at the Southern Republican Leadership Conference on Thursday.
As the first GOP presidential contender to take the stage, Walker was speaking to a friendly audience in Oklahoma City this weekend. President Obama carried no counties in Oklahoma in either 2008 or 2012.
Some of Walker’s biggest applause lines came when he talked about education, his faith, and family. But Walker brought the crowd to its feet longest when he discussed national security, or, as he described it, “safety.”
“We need a president who’s going to tell it like it is and say radical Islamic terrorism is a threat to us all and were going to do something to stop it,” Walker said. “It’s not if another attempt is made on American soil, it’s when another attempt is made on American soil, [and] on behalf of your children and mine I want to take the fight to them.”
Walker highlighted his trip to Israel last week and his meeting with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Walker said he could see how visibly distraught Israelis were about the Obama administration’s ongoing negotiations with Iran. Walker spoke about his personal connection to the United States’ relationship with Iran, noting that he knew one of the Americans held hostage by Iran in 1979, and remembered tying yellow ribbons around trees outside his home.
Walker also criticized Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton for their desire for bigger government.
“I listen to people like President Obama and Hillary Clinton, I would swear that they think you grow the economy by growing government,” Walker said. “There’s a reason we take the Fourth of July off and not the 15th of April — because in America we celebrate our independence from the government not our dependence on the government.”
Walker took aim at the other presidential candidates saying no other potential candidate has both won elections and fought for conservative principles. Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and Texas Gov. Rick Perry are among the presidential contenders scheduled to take the stage later this afternoon.
While in Oklahoma, Walker will meet with the state’s Lieutenant Gov. Todd Lamb and Attorney General Scott Pruitt, according to Walker’s spokesman.
