Here & Now

Christian Schneider On The Fall Of Walker's Presidential Bid

SCOTT WALKER:

I WILL SUSPEND MY CAMPAIGN IMMEDIATELY.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

GOVERNOR SCOTT WALKER THROWS IN THE TOWEL ON HIS PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN. I’M FREDERICA FREYBERG. TONIGHT ON “HERE & NOW,” WHAT HAPPENED AND WHAT WILL HAPPEN WITH THE GOVERNOR’S POLITICAL FORTUNES? THE STATE LOST ONE OF ITS LONG SERVING HIGH COURT JUSTICES THIS WEEK. WE’LL LEARN WHAT HAPPENS NOW TO THE SEAT OCCUPIED BY JUSTICE PATRICK CROOKS, WHO DIED MONDAY. THEN THE STORY OF A BIG MONEY GRANT AIMED AT GETTING DISADVANTAGED STUDENTS INTO COLLEGE. BUT FIRST HE WAS RUNNING EVEN BEFORE HE WAS RUNNING AND THEN HE STOPPED NOT LONG AFTER HE HAD BEGUN. MONDAY’S HASTILY-CALLED PRESS CONFERENCE MARKED THE END OF GOVERNOR SCOTT WALKER’S PRIMARY BID FOR PRESIDENT. AN END THAT WAS, LIKE THE START, WHAT HE DESCRIBED AS A CALLING FROM GOD.

SCOTT WALKER:

I WAS SITTING IN CHURCH YESTERDAY. THE PASTOR’S WORDS REMINDED ME THAT THE BIBLE IS FULL OF STORIES ABOUT PEOPLE WHO WERE CALLED TO BE LEADERS IN UNUSUAL WAYS. TODAY, I BELIEVE THAT I’M BEING CALLED TO LEAD BY HELPING TO CLEAR THE FIELD IN THIS RACE SO THAT A POSITIVE, CONSERVATIVE MESSAGE CAN RISE TO THE TOP OF THE FIELD.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

GOVERNOR WALKER WASTED LITTLE TIME GETTING BACK TO THE STATE CAPITOL. IN FACT, ONE PERSON CHALKED THE WAY BACK TO WORK JUST DOWN WISCONSIN AVENUE FROM WHERE THE GOVERNOR SUSPENDED HIS CAMPAIGN. THURSDAY HE ADDRESSED THE REPUBLICAN CAUCUS, HITTING THE GROUND RUNNING, DISCUSSING PLANS TO REDESIGN THE STATE’S CIVIL SERVICE STATUTES. BUT HOW DID THE GOVERNOR’S PRESIDENTIAL CAMPAIGN TRAIL RUN INTO SUCH AN ABRUPT DEAD-END? WE TAKE THAT UP WITH MILWAUKEE JOURNAL SENTINEL CONSERVATIVE COLUMNIST CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER. AND CHRISTIAN, THANKS VERY MUCH FOR BEING HERE.

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

THANKS.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

SO HOW SURPRISED DO YOU CONTINUE TO BE THAT SCOTT WALKER DROPPED OUT SO QUICKLY?

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

I WAS ACTUALLY VERY SURPRISED. APPARENTLY THE ONLY PERSON THAT KNEW HE WAS GETTING OUT OF THE RACE WAS GOD BECAUSE HE TOLD HIM TO GET OUT. TOLD HIM TO GET IN AND THEN TO GET OUT. APPARENTLY GOD’S GOT A PRETTY BAD SUPER PAC. YOU KNOW, IT’S FUNNY. JUST WITHIN HOURS OF HIM GETTING OUT OF THE RACE, WE STARTED TO HEAR ALL THE PROBLEMS THAT WERE HAVING WITH THE CAMPAIGN. I MEAN THE FIRST THING YOU HEARD WAS THAT THEY WERE RUNNING OUT OF MONEY. IN 71 DAYS THEY RAN A DEBT OF $700,000. AND THAT’S ALMOST IMPOSSIBLE TO DO. BUT MORE RELATED TO THAT I THINK WAS THE FACT THAT HE JUST WASN’T A VERY GOOD CANDIDATE. AND IT JUST EVENTUALLY GOT — CAUGHT UP TO HIM. HE JUST COULDN’T RAISE THE MONEY. THE MONEY BECAME PART OF THE PROBLEM BECAUSE OF SOME OF THE POSITIONS THAT HE WAS TAKING. IT WAS ALMOST A GAFFE A WEEK. AND PEOPLE WHO GIVE MONEY LOOKED AT THAT AND SAID, YOU KNOW, WE GOT 16 OTHER OPTIONS HERE, YOU KNOW, IF WE WANT TO INVEST IN THIS. SO I THINK THAT’S REALLY WHAT HE RAN INTO.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

SO ON WHAT MIGHT BE DESCRIBED AS KIND OF VAST OVERSPENDING IN THIS SHORT DURATION IN THIS CAMPAIGN, HOW COULD A CAMPAIGN THAT WAS GOING NATIONAL, THAT WAS NATIONAL, MAKE A MISSTEP LIKE THAT?

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

WELL, RIGHT OFF THE BAT, YOU KNOW, HE SURGED TO THE FRONT OF THE PACK, AND I DON’T THINK HE REALLY THOUGHT THAT HE WAS GOING TO BE THERE. SO WHAT THEY DID RIGHT AWAY IS HIRE I THINK 90 PEOPLE IS THE NUMBER THAT YOU HEAR, WHICH IS THREE TIMES AS MANY AS JEB BUSH OR MARCO RUBIO HAVE. AND I UNDERSTAND THE STRATEGY WHERE YOU WANT TO SHOW STRENGTH RIGHT OFF THE BAT, AND KIND OF MAKE YOURSELF INEVITABLE BUT YOU CAN ONLY SUSTAIN THAT TYPE OF SPENDING IF YOU HAVE A CANDIDATE GOOD ENOUGH TO GO OUT AND RAISE THE MONEY IF PEOPLE ARE ABLE TO BELIEVE IN HIM. AND EVERYTHING FROM BUILDING A WALL TO CANADA AND HIS FLIP-FLOPS, IT REALLY HURT HIM WITH THE BASE.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

WHAT SENSE, THOUGH, EVEN WITH ALL OF THAT IS THERE, TO YOUR KNOWLEDGE, AMONG KIND OF LONG-TIME SUPPORTERS THAT HE COULD HAVE EKED THIS OUT?

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

NOT THE WAY HE WAS GOING. I MEAN, EVEN I — SOME OF THE THINGS THAT YOU SEE AT THE BEGINNING, WHERE HE COMPARED HIS FIGHT WITH ACT 10 WITH ISIS AND, YOU KNOW, THE SINGLE MOST IMPORTANT FOREIGN POLICY EVENT OF MY LIFETIME WAS WHEN REAGAN FIRED THE AIR TRAFFIC CONTROLLERS. EVEN CONSERVATIVES LIKE ME LOOKED AT THAT AND SAID WHAT EXACTLY IS HE REALLY TALKING ABOUT? SO YOU KNOW HE RAN INTO A LOT OF TROUBLE WITH THE BASE THAT WAY.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

AND YET IF YOU HAVE A REALLY HIGH-PAID STAFF, CADRE OF 90, AND PRESUMABLY A LOT OF PEOPLE KIND OF TELLING HIM HOW TO BE AND WHAT TO SAY, HOW DOES THAT HAPPEN?

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

I’VE TALKED TO PEOPLE WHO ARE VERY CLOSE TO HIM. AND I ASKED THEM, SO WHO WAS EXACTLY THE INNER CIRCLE IN YOUR CAMPAIGN? AND THEY SAID SCOTT WALKER’S INNER CIRCLE WAS ESSENTIALLY A DOT. IT WAS HIM. HE WAS THE STRATEGIST. AND I THINK YOU SAW THAT IN THE ARTICLES THAT HAVE COME OUT SINCE WHERE MEETINGS TO SAVE THE CAMPAIGN WERE BEING CALLED BY TONETTE WALKER, BY WALKER’S WIFE. IT’S HARD TO THROW CAMPAIGN STAFF UNDER THE BUS WHEN YOU DON’T KNOW THE DYNAMICS OF WHO WAS LISTENING TO WHOM. BUT I THINK WE’LL FIND OUT SOON.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

DO YOU THINK IT CAN BE BLAMED ON TRUMP? I MEAN, HAD TRUMP NOT BEEN IN THIS RACE, THIS MIGHT HAVE LOOKED VERY DIFFERENT?

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

TRUMP CERTAINLY HAS SOMETHING TO DO WITH IT IN THE FACT THAT HE WAS VACUUMING VOTES AWAY FROM WALKER. YOU KNOW, YOU SEE AS SOON AS TRUMP RAISES, WALKER FALLS. BUT HE STOLE VOTES FROM A LOT OF PEOPLE. I THINK THE TRUMP PROBLEM FOR WALKER WAS THE WAY HE REACTED TO A LOT OF TRUMP’S POSITIONS. WHERE TRUMP WOULD COME OUT AND SAY, “WELL, I’M AGAINST BIRTHRIGHT CITIZENSHIP” AND SCOTT WALKER, THE TOUGH GUY, THE UNCOMPROMISING GUY SAID, “OH, YEAH, ME TOO.” OR TRUMP, HIS POSITION ON IMMIGRATION. WALKER TRIED TO GO EVEN FURTHER THAN TRUMP ON IMMIGRATION. SO THESE ARE ALL POSITIONS THAT HE’D HELD THAT HE FLIP-FLOPPED ON AND IT JUST MADE HIM LOOK LIKE A WEAK CANDIDATE I THINK.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

DO YOU THINK HE CAN COME BACK FROM THIS?

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

YES. HE’S DOING HIS KISS AND MAKEUP WITH THE STATE TOUR RIGHT NOW. HE’S DIVING RIGHT INTO PUBLIC POLICY AGAIN RIGHT AWAY, WHICH ISN’T GOING TO MAKE A WHOLE LOT OF PEOPLE HAPPY. IT’S GOING TO KIND OF GET HIS REPUTATION AS KIND OF A DIVISIVE FIGURE BACK. BUT IN TIME I THINK PEOPLE WILL FIGURE OUT, YEAH, HEY, REMEMBER THIS GUY, HE’S OUR GOVERNOR. SO I THINK HE’LL BE ABLE TO MAKE AMENDS.

FREDERICA FREYBERG:

ALRIGHT. WE’LL WATCH. CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER, THANKS VERY MUCH.

CHRISTIAN SCHNEIDER:

THANKS FOR HAVING ME.