Walker wants to direct attention to WI

Associated Press

Updated: Jun 15, 2012 8:19 AM

MILWAUKEE (AP) — On his first trip to Washington, D.C., since his recall victory, Gov. Scott Walker said he will use his growing political celebrity to direct attention to Wisconsin.

"You got all this attention. My sense is, why not use it? Not for me as much as why not get out and tell the story about Wisconsin and maybe attract some companies to come and grow here?" Walker said in an interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

During his two-day trip to Washington, Walker appeared with other governors at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and at a session with students at Marquette University's Les Aspin Center for Government. On Thursday, he took questions from national journalists at a breakfast held by The Christian Science Monitor - a tradition that has often served as a rite of passage for politicians stepping onto the national stage.

Walker said it was a chance to satisfy media requests.

Walker said he thought some have misinterpreted his recall victory and its national implications for the two parties and organized labor.

"There are people ... on the left who say this has no impact, it's all about money, and I think that's completely wrong," Walker said. "And I think there are people on the right who think this means every Republican is going to win and that you can apply it in every state and every jurisdiction. ... The truth is somewhere in between."

Walker said he thought his victory showed that governors could prevail over organized labor on union issues and public employee benefits, and that "you can make those changes and not suffer the wrath of the electorate."

But he stopped short of saying his handling of collective bargaining was a model for others. "Every state, every jurisdiction is different, so I don't know that there's one template," he said.

Walker also said his recall victory provides no assurance Republicans would carry his state in November. He said Mitt Romney "has a shot" in Wisconsin but has to appeal to more than just Republicans and needs to hone his economic message.

Walker said he planned to stay neutral in Wisconsin's four-way Republican Senate primary so he can help "referee" the contest in case the candidates get "grossly out of line" attacking one another. He touted the party's field and GOP prospects to win the seat against Democratic U.S. Rep. Tammy Baldwin.

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