Scott Walker's book fills in gaps in Act 10 history

Madison — At a San Diego conference in November 2010, then-Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels helped win over Scott Walker to the idea of repealing union bargaining for public workers, Walker writes in his forthcoming book.

The annual meeting of the Republican Governors Association gave Wisconsin's new governor-elect a chance to hear Daniels talk firsthand about his 2005 decision to end collective bargaining for state employees in Indiana.

Liberals and conservatives alike have debated the question of who deserves the credit — or blame — for Walker's signature law that cut employee benefits and bargaining power. Walker provides his answer in his new book, "Unintimidated: A Governor's Story and a Nation's Challenge."

"Our discussions proved to be a critical turning point in my thinking about how to address the budget crisis in Madison," Walker writes. "I wanted to hear everything (Daniels) had learned from his experience with collective bargaining in Indiana — how he did it, how his opponents responded, and what the results had been."

The Journal Sentinel obtained a copy of the book ahead of its Nov. 19 publication. Walker wrote it with Marc Thiessen, a former speechwriter for President George W. Bush, and it is widely viewed as one step by Walker to test the possibility of running for president in 2016.

The book focuses almost exclusively on the spring 2011 fight over Walker's move to eliminate most collective bargaining for most public employees and the recall elections they spawned. Those recalls cost three GOP senators their jobs, but Walker became the first governor in the nation's history to survive a recall election.


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