Scott Walker, Bush’s Top Challenger?

The Tampa Bay Times has an interesting profile of Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, whom they dub "the conservative threat to Jeb Bush." Here's a sample of what's in it:

Meet Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, the conservative threat to Jeb Bush

Once dubbed America's most divisive governor, Wisconsin's Scott Walker may be the biggest threat to the presidential ambitions of Jeb Bush and Hillary Clinton…

Combine a milquetoast Midwestern demeanor with his record of pushing through a polarizing conservative agenda, and you see a governor who wins in a swing state. He has done it by overwhelmingly uniting Republicans while also handily winning independent voters.

Now put him in a presidential election cycle where the GOP establishment appears to have its weakest grasp on the party in decades, the base is hungry for a fighter and a doer, and voters of all stripes are fed up with Washington. You wind up with Walker — virtually unknown to most Americans, untested on the national stage and lacking a college degree — leading the field by 8 percentage points in Iowa and tied for first place in New Hampshire with Bush, according to the average of recent polls compiled by RealClearPolitics…

Even in Florida, home turf of 2016 contenders Bush and Marco Rubio, Walker is making inroads. A new Public Policy Polling survey shows Bush leading Walker among likely Republican voters 25 percent to 17 percent, followed by 15 percent for Rubio. Among Florida Republicans describing themselves as "very conservative," Bush actually trails Walker, 23 percent to 19 percent…

In many respects, it's uncanny how Gov. Walker sounds like Gov. Bush. Walker talks about how Republicans need to "go big and go bold," and show accomplishments just as Bush used to tout his Big Hairy Audacious Goals, or BHAGs. Both stress reform agendas, but Walker has recent results to tout while Bush struggles with the widely held perception that he's another moderate establishment candidate.

"If Republicans are going to win the election in the fall of 2016 we need a new fresh face, big bold ideas from outside of Washington, and someone who's got the proven track record. . . . I think that's appealing whether it's in New Hampshire, whether it's in South Carolina, it's in Florida, Wisconsin or anywhere else in the country," said Walker, using a line that could have come straight from Jeb Bush — minus the fresh face reference…

It's a great read, and anybody interested in Walker ought to read it.