Walker presses Trump to ‘not blow off Wisconsin’

Former Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) urged former President Trump not to “blow off” the Badger State in 2024, as Trump considers skipping one of the first two Republican presidential primary debates.

“President Trump should not blow off Wisconsin,” Walker told the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, adding, “Hillary Clinton made that mistake in 2016, and it cost her the election.”

Trump is reportedly leaning toward skipping at least one of the first two GOP primary debates, the first of which will take place in Milwaukee in August. The second debate will be at the Ronald Reagan Presidential Library in Simi Valley, Calif.

Walker, who briefly ran against the former president in 2016, emphasized the importance of former Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Clinton’s loss in Wisconsin seven years ago. 

Clinton’s narrow losses in Wisconsin, Michigan and Pennsylvania would ultimately result in her defeat in the 2016 election.

“[Trump] needs to win over Wisconsin voters, swing voters, and make a dent in the youth vote,” Walker said to the Journal Sentinel.

The former Wisconsin governor also noted from his experience running against Trump that the former president “thrives in debates” and “commands the attention of the audience.”

The debate stage also allows for a large reach, with the first Republican primary debate in 2016 drawing in about 24 million viewers, Walker added.