Governor Scott Walker delivers his fifth state of the state address. (PHOTO: Jackie Johnson)
Governor Scott Walker said unlike other prospective candidates out there who have political action committees (PACs) with the “intention of promoting themselves,” his tax-exempt committee, Our American Revival, is “all about ideas.”
Speaking in Racine Wednesday morning, Walker said the committee is about pushing ideas that build the foundation for transferring powers away from the federal government and back to the states. He said the answers to the problems that ail the country are not going to come out of Washington DC or its leaders. They’ll come from the states and ultimately, he says, from the people.
“President Reagan said it well in his first inaugural address. We should all remember the federal government did not create the states; the states created the federal government.”
The governor said forming this committee allows him to get an idea of what the people think. “Part of setting a committee up like this is to talk about the ideas that I think that will help transform America, put the power back in the hands of the American people.” He said he wants to see whether that’s an idea that resonates with others.
AUDIO: Walker said he worries about the future of this country. 1:12
Walker said he worries about the future of America, but is also optimistic. He pointed to various states with “common sense conservative leadership” that he said have been able to turn things around. He believes the same can be true for the federal government. Walker said the country needs fresh leadership with big bold ideas and the courage to act on them — and that leadership has to come from outside Washington. The governor wouldn’t say definitively that he’s running for president, but it sure sounds like it. “I don’t see anybody else out there who meets each of those three criteria.”
Walker announced the formation of a tax-exempt group on Tuesday that would raise and spend funds to increase his national profile and help deliver a message. He expects to make a formal decision about a presidential candidacy within a few months.
Thanks to WRJN for contributing to this story.