Gov. Scott Walker (R-WI)
Scott Walker got a little bit of side-eye from CBS's Bob Schieffer on
Face the Nation Sunday over Walker's
insistence that the most important foreign policy decision of his lifetime was Ronald Reagan firing striking air traffic controllers. But Walker showed what he must think is presidential firmness in sticking with his original ludicrous position.
Schieffer asked:
Don't you think there may have been a few things while I agree that that was a significant development, a few things maybe a little more important like the Nixon's opening to China, for example, the decision to go after Osama bin Laden. Do you really think that was the most significant foreign policy statement of your lifetime?
Acknowledging that "those were all important things," Walker nonetheless went on to insist that:
“I came of age during the Reagan administration. I was I think I believe just turned 13 two days before his election in 1980. And for me, looking at that kind of leadership, he set the tone, not just domestically with that action; he sent a message around the world as – as you just read off, I think not only to our allies, this is – was someone who was serious that that could be trusted. But in combination with our adversaries, they sent a clear message, not to mess with him.”
Of course it's in Walker's interest to have domestic union-busting be seen as The Single Most Important Policy Possible, since it's his signature policy. But ... really? Steve Benen highlights
a few other things he might have chosen:
Walker was born in 1967, which means his “lifetime” includes a wide variety of foreign policy decisions from U.S. officials: two wars in Iraq, a series of START treaties, Nixon going to China, the end of the war in Vietnam, the Camp David Accords, the war in Afghanistan, Kosovo, Bosnia, Iran/Contra, the U.S. role in negotiating the Northern Ireland peace process, the raid on Osama bin Laden’s compound, the Iranian hostage crisis, etc.
But nothing shows resolve like hurting American workers, apparently. It's quite a promise for a Walker presidency.