GREENVILLE, S.C. (AP) – Republicans making their pitch to be the party’s 2016 presidential nominee aimed to out-do each other Saturday in arguing that President Barack Obama is a failed leader.
But hitting Obama with the usual critiques – from his 2010 health care overhaul to allegations of missteps on foreign policy to the rise in the national debt during his time in office – also made it hard for the gaggle of White House aspirants to stand out during a forum in South Carolina hosted by the conservative group Citizens United.
Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker tried by touting his ability to beat whoever is nominated by the Democratic Party, reminding activists that he won three statewide elections in four years in a state twice carried by Obama.
“The last time a Republican carried the state for president was 1984,” he said. “That’s a tough state.”
He even took the crowd back to his decision to run for county executive in heavily Democratic Milwaukee County. “Never ever had there been a Republican in that spot before,” he said.