TRYING TO OUT-TRUMP – “TRUMP”, IS POLITICAL SUICIDE



 Walker & Trump at the first GOP Debate

Scott Walker is just a Republican weather-vane being “Trumped” by "The Donald".

 

The Wall Street Journal’s, Reid Epstein, recently wrote about Governor Scott Walker: “At each step in the Wisconsin governor’s career, he has run against Republican opponents with one overriding strategy: 'Never letting anybody get to the right of him.' ”
 

For years I have been writing that more than any other GOP candidate, no one reacts to whichever way the conservative wind is blowing than the Wisconsin governor, Scott Walker.

After his poor performance in the first Republican debate, Walker lost his longtime lead in the polls in Iowa.  And no one has been hurt more by Donald Trump jumping into the fray than Governor Walker.  Walker has since seen his support drop nearly in half over the last month, and it’s now down to single digits.

But the basic reason his supporters, including the billionaire Koch Brothers, are starting to get jittery about the Wisconsin governor is Walker’s overall inconsistency about….almost everything.

For instance, NBC’s Kasie Hunt asked whether, as with Donald Trump, did Walker support ending birthright citizenship.  Walker responded with: “I think that’s something we should, yeah, absolutely, going forward.”  Later, when asked by CNBC’s John Harwood to clarify his position, Walker retreated. “I’m not taking a position on it one way or the other until the border is secured.”

Finally, days later, Walker said without qualification that he would not seek to repeal the 14th Amendment, which grants birthright citizenship to all those born on American soil.

So, a day after Trump declared his opposition to granting automatic citizenship to those born on American soil, Walker embraced the same position, only to jettison it six days later.  Totally inconsistent.

But this is just one of Walker’s many 180° turns.

·       Walker had originally spoken favorably about the Environmental Protection Agency’s proposal to regulate carbon-dioxide emissions from coal power plants, but then he reversed course.

·       In 2010, he opposed the harsh immigration law in Arizona, but backed down only days later when besieged by criticism.

·       In 1993, Walker opposed the death penalty until 2006, when he stated he now supported it.

·       In 2013, Walker supported a pathway to citizenship for illegal immigrants, but he reversed himself earlier this year.

·       Also in 2013, he said he had no interest in “right to work” legislation, but earlier this year he signed such a Wisconsin bill.

·       The governor ran an ad saying that while he’s pro-life, he supported leaving the final decision on abortion to a “woman and her doctor.” Now he says he opposes abortion in all cases, even to protect the life of the mother.

·       In 2014, Walker said the issue of same-sex marriage should be left to the courts. Now he backs a constitutional amendment giving the power to decide on gay marriage to the states.

·       In 1993 Walker supported positions on abortion and immigration which he now opposes.

In trying to “Out-Trump, Trump”, Walker and the otherwise viable Republican contenders are doing themselves major harm just by trying to out-match Trump in conservatism.

There is no way to outflank Donald Trump.

Even Louisiana Governor, Bobby Jindal, in trying to match Trump, Jindal echoed Trump’s call for ending birthright citizenship for illegal immigrants.  But Jindal himself was born to legal immigrants and in reality would be considered an adult “anchor baby” who benefited from the same birthright citizenship he’s calling to end.

Donald Trump as a RINO (Republican-In-Name-Only) is making a joke out of the ultra-conservative Republican primary process by embracing the most extreme positions on everything.  Particularly his position on immigration.  Conservatives such as Walker and Governor Jindal are just making fools of themselves as they try to “out-Trump…..Trump”.

When the dust finally clears, these wannabee nominees will rue the day they went against their own core beliefs, (whatever Walker’s beliefs really are???), and in the process, they will lose the GOP nomination.

Copyright G.Ater  2015