Walker: Washington offers ‘false choices’

Walker repeated his earlier suggestion that his presidential campaign theme would be founded on his vision of a country where states have more power to set their own courses — likely a motif among many Republicans this election cycle.

Walker framed many of the problems facing states — from the economy to education to energy — as the result of “false choices” offered by the federal government. States are at their best, Walker argued, when they are empowered to make their own choices or devise a middle road.

“There’s this false choice between, you’ve either got to raise taxes or you’ve got to dramatically reduce services,” Walker said in one instance, speaking about how he has managed his state’s budget.

“What business says, ‘Times are tough, I’m either going to double the price of my product, or cut the quality in half’?” Walker added. “In the world outside of government, nobody says that.”

In some cases, Walker dismissed the need to make any choice at all. Speaking about a menu of energy policy proposals, Walker said, “I think we need leaders in Washington who will stand up and say: We want all of the above, both for a stronger economy as well as for a strong sense of safety.”

The address, upbeat and delivered to a small room filled mostly with members of the media, did not incorporate a dramatically new message for Walker, but it marked an important new chapter: a push to seal his credibility among Washington Republican powerbrokers.

Walker was cautious not to completely offend his Washington audience with his anti-Washington message, and he opened his remarks by opining on how beautiful the city looks on approach into Reagan National Airport.

“But, I’ve got to tell you,” Walker added, “as much as I like coming here, I love going home even more.”

Walker arrived in Washington this week riding a wave of positive buzz from his well-received speech in Iowa on Saturday to Rep. Steve King’s Freedom Summit. Walker also within the past week launched a fundraising vehicle for his nascent campaign, with a committee dubbed “Our American Revival.”

But Walker’s standing in the field of likely Republican presidential contenders might have shifted substantially just one hour before he spoke, when Mitt Romney announced he will not run for president a third time.

“I believe that one of our next generation of Republican leaders, one who may not be as well known as I am today, one who has not yet taken their message across the country, one who is just getting started, may well emerge as being better able to defeat the Democrat nominee,” Romney said in a statement. “In fact, I expect and hope that to be the case.”

There is a growing sense among establishment Republicans that Walker might be one of the newcomers best positioned to fill that niche. Romney’s withdrawal, and the likelihood that he might lend his support to a candidate he considers conservative, offers more room for Walker as well as other 2016 hopefuls like Sen. Marco Rubio and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie.

What sets Walker apart is that he is still something of a folk hero among conservatives for taking on the unions in Wisconsin and winning — a sentiment evident Friday. Walker’s first-term campaign to win concessions from powerful government employee unions provoked labor organizers from around the country to descend on the ordinarily sleepy capital of Madison. The Obama Department of Labor took a strong position against the governor, with the then-Secretary of Labor urging anti-Walker organizers in 2011 to “keep fighting.” Walker was ultimately subject to a recall election, but he won by a strong margin and emerged as a model for governors in many states who face entrenched government employee unions.

Fred Malek, founder of the American Action Network, gushed during a discussion with Walker as he recalled that banner political fight against the protesters who swarmed the state Capitol.

“How did you maintain your resolve?” Malek gushed.