In a video released early Monday morning, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker officially announced that he will be running for president.
“America needs new, fresh leadership with big, bold ideas from outside of Washington to actually get things done,” Walker said in the video. “In Wisconsin, we didn’t nibble around the edges.”
To get the Republican nomination, Walker will first have to secure primary victory in a field that includes Jeb Bush, Marco Rubio and Rand Paul among others. As governor, Walker has tackled everything from education reform and government waste but it was labor policy that earned him national attention.
“We enacted big, bold reforms that took power out of the hands of the big government special interests and gave it to the hard-working taxpayers,” he continued. “And people’s lives are better because of it.”
The labor policy reforms, known as Act 10, significantly changed the collective bargaining process for most public employees within the state. It also required public unions to hold a renewal vote every couple of years to determine if workers still wanted them.
“We fought and won,” Walker noted. “In the Republican field, there are some who are good fighters, but they haven’t won those battles. And there are others who’ve won elections, but haven’t consistently taken on the big fights.”
Labor unions and their supporters adamantly opposed the law and even tried to get Walker thrown out of office with a recall election. Walker, however, was able to overcome the attack.
“We showed you can do both,” Walker added. “Now, I am running for President to fight and win for the American people. Without sacrificing our principles, we won three elections in four years in a blue state. We did it by leading. Now, we need to do the same thing for America.”
Republicans in the legislature went a step further in the past year when they passed a law which banned mandatory union dues as a condition of employment. Though Walker wasn’t directly involved in creating the measure, unions blamed him anyways.
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