What A Day On The Campaign Trail With Scott Walker Looks Like

Gov. Scott Walker is a man who doesn’t like to sit in one place for too long. He spends a lot of time on the road, whether in Wisconsin or out of state. When it comes to his campaign he can log hundreds of miles per day hitting vital media markets.

The campaign machine on last Wednesday, Oct. 22 started early with a morning press conference at a Milwaukee firefighters union and a private meeting in Wisconsin Dells. Then, Walker headed for the far western Wisconsin community of Hudson, where he paid a visit to Viking Electronics.

The event, like many Walker campaign stops, was at a manufacturing plant and was closed to the public. Walker, accompanied by former Gov. Tommy Thompson, was given a tour of the facility. Then, away from the machines, where a small group of workers had been gathered by the company, there’s a speech.

After a brief introduction by the owner of the company, Thompson took a turn at the microphone.

“I want to tell you that Scott Walker has made Wisconsin once again the pride of the Midwest and I want to make sure he’s able to continue doing that,” Thompson roared. “That’s why I’m traveling with him and he is having a lot of success. And I’ll tell ya, he is going to have even more success next term.”

When Walker speaks, he is smooth and confident — traits perfected from more than two decades in politics. He started with a story about buying Javon Walker Packers jerseys on the cheap, linking that to a recent jobs estimate.

“The reason I brought number 84 out is because just last week, just a few days ago, we learned that Wisconsin last month created 8,400 new private-sector jobs,” he told the crowd.

Walker attributed the growth to his economic policies, and suggested the state would be closer to his goal of creating 250,000 jobs if it weren’t for unions protesting his restrictions on collective bargaining.

“That first year there were protests, and then there were recalls against me,” he said. “So for the first two years we were kind of stuck, because a lot of businesses said, what do they need most? They need certainty, and there wasn’t a lot of certainty happening.”

He then shifted to the future, describing his plan for the next four years.

“It’s a simple plan,” he said. It’s about ensuring that everyone who wants a job can find a job.”

Tax cuts, another tuition freeze, fighting Obamacare, job training and mandatory drug testing for people on government assistance rounded out the rest of Walker’s speech — all of which have been common themes on the campaign trail.

When he finished speaking, Walker greeted the workers. His handlers eyed their watches while security guards kept watch over the crowd.

Then, just as suddenly as it arrived, the Walker campaign left Hudson and drove to a St. Paul airport to catch a plane to Eau Claire. (Reporters aren’t allowed on his flights.)

In Eau Claire, he visited Johnson Lithographics, a printing company nearly 100 years old. After another obligatory tour, Walker and Thompson delivered speeches nearly identical to those given earlier in the day, with Thompson’s introduction, Walker’s jersey story and his plans for next term.

After meeting with workers, Walker spoke with reporters from local TV stations. He spoke about his love of visiting the Chippewa Valley — a region full of voters prone to political swings. When asked why he preferred private campaign stops at businesses, Walker said they’re more effective than public gatherings.

“At town hall meetings, most of the time what you get are activists on the right and the left and you don’t really get everyday working people,” said Walker. “When you come right to their workplace, you get just the opposite.”

The final stop for the Walker campaign on that Wednesday was a private evening fundraiser at a nearby country club. Media were not invited.

It was just another day in the final push leading to what’s expected to be a close election. But Walker said that it’s not draining. He said getting out of the Capitol to meet people is an invigorating and important part of being governor.