Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI)
On Monday, President Obama released a
statement saying he was "deeply disappointed that a new anti-worker law in Wisconsin will weaken, rather than strengthen workers in the new economy." But will the president taking aim at a Gov. Scott Walker policy
hurt or help Walker's presidential ambitions? According to
The Hill's Jordan Fabian:
Democrats say Obama’s unusual shot at the likely GOP candidate, who sits atop early polls, could energize liberal opposition to Walker as he moves closer to a presidential run.
But Republican allies of Walker believe the president’s broadside could actually help the governor’s impending candidacy by elevating his stature in the GOP field.
There is another possibility, which the White House says explains the statement:
“I saw a lot of the political commentary speculating that that’s what we were doing, but our bottom line is this is an issue that we have spoken out whenever it rears its ugly head,” White House principal deputy press secretary Eric Schultz told reporters Tuesday during a gaggle aboard Air Force One.
“Instead of rolling back workers’ rights, states, including Wisconsin, should be expanding workers’ rights, like raising the minimum wage and paid sick leave,” Schultz added.
No! Surely not. We're expected to believe that Obama issued a statement on the merits of the anti-union policy being signed by an anti-union governor? Just as he issued statements on the merits of minimum wage increases passed by Massachusetts, Minnesota, and Connecticut last year?
There's also this. In his statement on the Wisconsin law, Obama said that "it’s inexcusable that, over the past several years, just when middle-class families and workers need that kind of security the most, there’s been a sustained, coordinated assault on unions, led by powerful interests and their allies in government." That "sustained, coordinated assault" is worthy of notice. Whatever its hypothetical impact on a presidential campaign that has yet to formally launch.