MADISON, Wis. — Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker declared his candidacy for president Monday, casting himself as a “fighter” who muscled through an aggressive conservative agenda in a state that typically supports Democrats.
The second-term governor becomes the 15th high-profile Republican to enter the GOP presidential contest, yet he says he occupies a unique space in the congested field.
Walker is highlighting his clashes with labor unions as the foundation for his candidacy.
The 47-year-old governor enacted policies weakening organized labor’s political power and became the first governor in U.S. history to defeat a recall election. Now, he’s working to remind Republican voters about the 4-year-old fight and the recall election sparked by his efforts to weaken unions — and a series of lesser-known triumphs he says set him apart from the crowded Republican field.
Walker cut income and corporate taxes by nearly $2 billion, lowered property taxes, legalized the carrying of concealed weapons, made abortions more difficult to obtain, required photo identification when voting and made Wisconsin a right-to-work state.
His budget this year, which plugged a $2.2 billion shortfall when he signed it into law Sunday, requires drug screenings for public benefit recipients, expands the private school voucher program, freezes tuition at the University of Wisconsin while cutting funding by $250 million and removing tenure protections from state law.
