Few Americans whose last name doesn’t begin with Koch were sad that former Wisconsin governor Scott Walker dropped his bid Monday to become the Republican presidential candidate. His poll numbers were dismal—0 percent in one recent poll.
But not many people (besides his political nemesis) were as actively, schadenfreude-ly joyful about it as Liz Mair. Mair had worked off and on with Walker for years, then spent a single day as an aide to Walker this summer before an apparently acrimonious parting over tweets that criticized Iowa’s outsized role in the primary process.
The sooner we remove Iowa's frontrunning status, the better off American politics and policy will be.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) January 24, 2015
She was similarly frank with Walker’s many, many apparent failures on Monday.
1. Scott Walker could, I think, have been a competent President. However, like almost all Rs, for awhile now, he hasn't been my 1st choice.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
2. Walker did a number of things wrong in this race. This is the beginning of what will be a lengthy list.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Things he got wrong: Misunderstanding the GOP base, its priorities and stances. Pandering. Flip-flopping.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Hiring staff who did not know him well and did not understand his record or his reputation across all segments in Wisconsin.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Allowing certain staff (ahem) to marginalize and cut off people in Walker's orbit who had got him to the governorship and kept him there.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Becoming so invested in winning, no matter what it took, that he lost sight of his real identity as a political leader.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Hiring people who spent a lot to build out a massive operation that would not be sustainable unless financing remained amazing forever.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Treating Iowa as locked down, boasting early of the ability to win even in states like Nevada where winning always looked improbable.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Minor things that didn't help: Key staff spending their time on, uh, stuff other than work when campaign was flailing.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Not training himself out of tics incl instinctively answering "yes" and "absolutely" to things, comparing lots of things to union fight.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Not educating himself fast enough on issues outside governor's remit. Educating himself on some things by talking to the wrong people.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
I said at the time to people who wrote that Walker would lose because he fired me that that was bullshit and silly.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
But I also feared that the reasons behind his firing of me would be the ultimate causes of his demise. Now that appears to be true.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
She did, for the record, name a handful of Walker’s people who she found good at their jobs.
Finally, Mair alluded to a “very bad story” about Walker that may have convinced him to resign so it doesn’t appear that he did so under scandal. So if you like political gossip, keep your eyes peeled over the next few days.
One last thought: Walker's timing is good. Word is he just avoided getting tied to a very bad story that could well have been coming.
— Liz Mair (@LizMair) September 21, 2015
Photo via Gage Skidmore/Flickr (CC BY SA 2.0)