Walker touts state Republican leadership

Republicans at the national level should emulate state Republican lawmakers, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker (R) said Sunday during CBS’s “Face the Nation.”

{mosads}“Americans are hungry for … leadership,” especially the kind being shown at the state level, he said.

Walker pointed to healthcare as an example of the Republican leadership at the state level.

“I think there is a much better market-driven solution” than the system mandated by President Obama’s healthcare law, he said, and state lawmakers are the ones that “have the courage to stand up and do it.”

Walker contrasted national Republican politicians with state Republican politicians, encouraging the former to be more like the latter.

State Republican politicians “talk about things that are relevant and optimistic,” he said.

“We focus obsessively on helping fix the economy and the private sector and helping put in place a balanced budget.”

Meanwhile, in D.C., congressional Republicans focus on things like the sequester and the debt ceiling, he said. “Those are things a handful of people in politics pay attention to.”

That’s why state Republican politicians like Walker — and New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal — are being talked about for a 2016 presidential run, Walker said.

“They talk about it because we’ve taken real action and real reforms.”

Walker indicated that he remains open to running for president in 2016.

For 2014, he said, “I’m running for governor … we’ll see what happens after that.”

Ultimately, his decision to run or not will depend on issues in Wisconsin, he said.

“My decision will be made not just by myself and my family, but I’ve got to look at my state. … There’s a part of me that would just like to stay focused on helping my state move forward.”