Walker: I’ll leave the nonsense to the media

Eric Bradner
By Eric Bradner, CNN
Published 11:01 PM EST, Mon February 23, 2015
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is taking aim at the media in the wake of a recent rough patch.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker is taking aim at the media in the wake of a recent rough patch.
Getty Images
Washington CNN  — 

Forget other Republicans – Scott Walker is taking on the mainstream media.

The Wisconsin governor is using the tried-and-true tactic to survive the criticism he’s faced over his refusal to answer questions that have followed him in recent days about what he thinks about evolution and if he believes President Barack Obama is a Christian and a patriot.

Instead, as his star rises among conservatives and he moves toward a 2016 presidential bid, Walker is insisting those questions are a media-manufactured sideshow – and he’ll have nothing to do with answering them.

WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 27: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker stands on the North Lawn of the White House before making remarks to the news media after a meeting of the National Governors Association with President Barack Obama February 27, 2012 in Washington, DC. The bipartisan association is finishing its three-day meeting today. Walker, a Republican, will probably face a recall election this year, an effort spearheaded in part by Democrats and pro-union supporters in his state. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
WASHINGTON, DC - FEBRUARY 27: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker stands on the North Lawn of the White House before making remarks to the news media after a meeting of the National Governors Association with President Barack Obama February 27, 2012 in Washington, DC. The bipartisan association is finishing its three-day meeting today. Walker, a Republican, will probably face a recall election this year, an effort spearheaded in part by Democrats and pro-union supporters in his state. (Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images)
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Walker took his latest shots at the political press on Monday night during a speech at a Christian media convention in Nashville, Tennessee.

“You’ve seen in the media a lot of talk over the last few days about these self-manufactured ‘gotcha’ moments from the media,” Walker told the crowd, in a reference to reporters who hounded him over the weekend during his trip to Washington for the National Governors Association conference.

“Well they want to talk about things that I don’t think most Americans want to talk about,” he said. “Our commitment is going forward, we’re going to talk about the things that matter to everyday Americans and we’re going to leave the nonsense to the media on the side and we’re not going to focus on that, we’re going to focus on the things that matter.”

It wasn’t just one speech. Walker has reacted to the controversy – set off when he stood beside former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani last week as Giuliani insisted that Obama doesn’t love America – by deflecting reporters’ questions and then telling his supporters that media are to blame.

In a fundraising email sent out Monday, Walker’s campaign criticized “small, petty and pale” questions from the “Liberal Media.”

Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has said his decision to run for the Republican nomination will be based on two things: his family and whether he can lift America's spirit. His father and brother are former Presidents.
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Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush has said his decision to run for the Republican nomination will be based on two things: his family and whether he can lift America's spirit. His father and brother are former Presidents.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has created a political committee that will help him travel and raise money while he considers a 2016 bid. Additionally, billionaire businessman David Koch said in a private gathering in Manhattan this month that he wants Walker to be the next president, but he doesn't plan to back anyone in the primaries.
Photos: Potential 2016 presidential candidates
Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has created a political committee that will help him travel and raise money while he considers a 2016 bid. Additionally, billionaire businessman David Koch said in a private gathering in Manhattan this month that he wants Walker to be the next president, but he doesn't plan to back anyone in the primaries.
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is establishing a committee to formally explore a White House bid. "If I run, my candidacy will be based on the idea that the American people are ready to try a dramatically different direction," he said in a news release <a href="http://www.cnn.com/2015/05/18/politics/bobby-jindal-forms-exploratory-committee/index.html">provided to CNN on Monday, May 18</a>.
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Justin Sullivan/Getty Images/File
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal is establishing a committee to formally explore a White House bid. "If I run, my candidacy will be based on the idea that the American people are ready to try a dramatically different direction," he said in a news release provided to CNN on Monday, May 18.
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J. Scott Applewhite/AP
Sen. Bernie Sanders, an independent from Vermont who caucuses with Democrats, has said the United States needs a "political revolution" of working-class Americans looking to take back control of the government from billionaires. He first announced the run in an email to supporters early on the morning of Thursday, April 30.
On March 2, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson announced the launch of an exploratory committee. The move will allow him to raise money that could eventually be transferred to an official presidential campaign and indicates he is on track with stated plans to formally announce a bid in May.
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NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP/Getty Images
On March 2, retired neurosurgeon Ben Carson announced the launch of an exploratory committee. The move will allow him to raise money that could eventually be transferred to an official presidential campaign and indicates he is on track with stated plans to formally announce a bid in May.
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham has said he'll make a decision about a presidential run sometime soon. A potential bid could focus on Graham's foreign policy stance.
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Scott Olson/Getty Images
South Carolina Sen. Lindsey Graham has said he'll make a decision about a presidential run sometime soon. A potential bid could focus on Graham's foreign policy stance.
Hillary Clinton launched her presidential bid Sunday, April 12, through a video message on social media. She continues to be considered the overwhelming front-runner among possible 2016 Democratic presidential candidates.
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Sean Gardner/Getty Images
Hillary Clinton launched her presidential bid Sunday, April 12, through a video message on social media. She continues to be considered the overwhelming front-runner among possible 2016 Democratic presidential candidates.
Sen. Marco Rubio announced his bid for the 2016 presidency on Monday, April 13, a day after Hillary Clinton, with a rally in Florida. He's a Republican rising star from Florida who swept into office in 2010 on the back of tea party fervor. But his support of comprehensive immigration reform, which passed the Senate but has stalled in the House, has led some in his party to sour on his prospects.
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Andrew Burton/Getty Images
Sen. Marco Rubio announced his bid for the 2016 presidency on Monday, April 13, a day after Hillary Clinton, with a rally in Florida. He's a Republican rising star from Florida who swept into office in 2010 on the back of tea party fervor. But his support of comprehensive immigration reform, which passed the Senate but has stalled in the House, has led some in his party to sour on his prospects.
Lincoln Chafee, a Republican-turned-independent-turned-Democrat former governor and senator of Rhode Island, said he's running for president on Thursday, April 16, as a Democrat, but his spokeswoman said the campaign is still in the presidential exploratory committee stages.
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Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images
Lincoln Chafee, a Republican-turned-independent-turned-Democrat former governor and senator of Rhode Island, said he's running for president on Thursday, April 16, as a Democrat, but his spokeswoman said the campaign is still in the presidential exploratory committee stages.
Jim Webb, the former Democratic senator from Virginia, is entertaining a 2016 presidential run. In January, he told NPR that his party has not focused on white, working-class voters in past elections.
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Steve Helber/
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BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images
Vice President Joe Biden has twice before made unsuccessful bids for the Oval Office -- in 1988 and 2008. A former senator known for his foreign policy and national security expertise, Biden made the rounds on the morning shows recently and said he thinks he'd "make a good President."
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has started a series of town halls in New Hampshire to test the presidential waters, becoming more comfortable talking about national issues and staking out positions on hot topic debates.
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Jeff Zelevansky/Getty Images
New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie has started a series of town halls in New Hampshire to test the presidential waters, becoming more comfortable talking about national issues and staking out positions on hot topic debates.
Rep. Paul Ryan, a former 2012 vice presidential candidate and fiscally conservative budget hawk, says he's keeping his "options open" for a possible presidential run but is not focused on it.
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BRENDAN SMIALOWSKI/AFP/Getty Images
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Sen. Rand Paul officially announced his presidential bid on Tuesday, April 7, at a rally in Louisville, Kentucky. The tea party favorite probably will have to address previous controversies that include comments on civil rights, a plagiarism allegation and his assertion that the top NSA official lied to Congress about surveillance.
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Andrew Burton/Getty Images
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Texas Sen. Ted Cruz announced his 2016 presidential bid on Monday, March 23, in a speech at Liberty University. The first-term Republican and tea party darling is considered a gifted orator and smart politician. He is best known in the Senate for his marathon filibuster over defunding Obamacare.
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Andrew Burton/Getty Images
Texas Sen. Ted Cruz announced his 2016 presidential bid on Monday, March 23, in a speech at Liberty University. The first-term Republican and tea party darling is considered a gifted orator and smart politician. He is best known in the Senate for his marathon filibuster over defunding Obamacare.
Democrat Martin O'Malley, the former Maryland governor, released a "buzzy" political video in November 2013 in tandem with visits to New Hampshire. He also headlined a Democratic Party event in South Carolina, which holds the first Southern primary.
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Democrat Martin O'Malley, the former Maryland governor, released a "buzzy" political video in November 2013 in tandem with visits to New Hampshire. He also headlined a Democratic Party event in South Carolina, which holds the first Southern primary.
Republican Rick Perry, the former Texas governor, announced in 2013 that he would not be seeking re-election, leading to speculation that he might mount a second White House bid.
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Stewart F. House/Getty Images
Republican Rick Perry, the former Texas governor, announced in 2013 that he would not be seeking re-election, leading to speculation that he might mount a second White House bid.
Former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum, a social conservative, gave Mitt Romney his toughest challenge in the nomination fight last time out and has made trips recently to early voting states, including Iowa and South Carolina.
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Mark Wilson/Getty Images
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Spencer Platt/Getty Images
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“Now is the time to stand up against the publicity hounds and the journalistic pack, and help Governor Walker fight back with a ‘Friends of Scott Walker’ contribution of $10 or $100 or $1,000 or whatever amount is right for you,” the email said. “Your support will show the clueless and mindless journalistic herd that you know what matters most and that it is not the pointless minutiae that they are pushing.”

Two days earlier, Walker had refused to answer questions from The Washington Post over whether he believes Obama is a Christian or a patriot. He said he hasn’t spoken to Obama about those things, so he can’t possibly answer – and besides, the questions have nothing to do with what most Americans are concerned about.

He told the newspaper that while people working in media might judge his answers harshly, regular voters wouldn’t.

“To me, this is a classic example of why people hate Washington and, increasingly, they dislike the press,” he said. “The things they care about don’t even remotely come close to what you’re asking about.”

The scrutiny over Walker’s comments comes as he rises in polls of Republican primary voters. Several in recent weeks have found him narrowly ahead in a splintered field in Iowa.

In his speech in Nashville, Walker insisted he wouldn’t let his campaign’s narrative be driven by media controversies.

“We will talk about what we are for, not what we are against,” he said. “I think Americans deserve a real debate and a real focus about where we are going to take this nation, not what’s wrong with our primary opponents or not what’s wrong with our general election opponent.”

Walker did, though, take a veiled shot at at least one of his potential opponents – former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush.

“Unlike some out there,” he said. “I didn’t inherit fame or fortune from my family.”