Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker says we need to "go big and go bold," but when asked what his bold foreign policy would be, he couldn't give a straight answer.
Walker appeared to be completely out of his depth during an interview on ABC's This Week yesterday.
RADDATZ: Let's not go back. Let's go forward. What is your big, bold idea in Syria?
WALKER: I think aggressively, we need to take the fight to ISIS and any other radical Islamic terrorist in and around the world, because it's not a matter of when they attempt an attack on American soil, or not if I should say, it's when, and we need leadership that says clearly, not only amongst the United States but amongst our allies, that we're willing to take appropriate action. I think it should be surgical.
RADDATZ: You don't think 2,000 air strikes is taking it to ISIS in Syria and Iraq?
WALKER: I think we need to have an aggressive strategy anywhere around the world. I think it's a mistake to -
RADDATZ: But what does that mean? I don't know what aggressive strategy means. If we're bombing and we've done 2,000 air strikes, what does an aggressive strategy mean in foreign policy?
WALKER: I think anywhere and everywhere, we have to be - go beyond just aggressive air strikes. We have to look at other surgical methods. And ultimately, we have to be prepared to put boots on the ground if that's what it takes, because I think, you know--
RADDATZ: Boots on the ground in Syria? U.S. boots on the ground in Syria?
WALKER: I don't think that is an immediate plan, but I think anywhere in the world--
RADDATZ: But you would not rule that out.
WALKER: I wouldn't rule anything out. I think when you have the lives of Americans at stake and our freedom loving allies anywhere in the world, we have to be prepared to do things that don't allow those measures, those attacks, those abuses to come to our shores.
This is what it looks like when you more or less prescribe the same strategy and doctrine that the president is currently employing, but you don't want to appear as if you agree with it.
No administration can completely rule out every option because the unexpected can happen. The real question is what will be your threshold for the use of force or "boots on the ground."
Walker's rambling response doesn't make it clear, but his call for an "aggressive strategy" gives the impression that he would be more cavalier about deploying American forces than the current administration has been. Furthermore, Walker's call to rally around our "freedom loving allies" is an uncomfortable throwback to George W. Bush's declaration that terrorists "hate us for our freedom."
Scott Walker's tenure as governor of Wisconsin has been one of bluster so it may come as no surprise that we find parity in his foreign policy.
ABC's Martha Raddatz deserves credit for not allowing Walker to easily wiggle his way out of this one.