Scott Walker: GOP candidates ‘falling over themselves’ to win Walker’s support

Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, said that Carson, a devout Christian, should withdraw “because he’s unfit to lead because his views are in contradiction with the United States Constitution”.

One of the last Republicans to enter the race, Mr Walker joined former Texas governor Rick Perry as one of the first to leave it, unable to adjust to the popularity of billionaire property mogul Mr Trump or break out in either of the party’s first two debates. More importantly, it may speed the decline of GOP front-runner Donald Trump.

Poll director Charles Franklin said the governor has some “fences to mend” here in the state, as he shifts his focus away from the campaign.

Overall, Franklin sees the end of the campaign as a “remarkably short collapse” for someone who had been considered a top tier candidate just earlier this year.

Although some in the GOP had picked other candidates, Walker was by far the frontrunner among the activists in his neighboring state. “He probably wasn’t going to get the nomination, but he certainly should’ve been more competitive than he was”.

“Today I believe that I am being called to lead, by helping to clear the field in this race so a positive, conservative message can rise to the top of the field”, he said.

Phil Musser, an unaligned Republican strategist, said he expected donors to nevertheless sit patient for a while. “It’s one less body to climb over”. “I think he’s doing the right thing by stepping down so quickly”.

Feehery predicted that former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush and Ohio Gov. John Kasich will be the biggest beneficiaries of Walker’s exit.

After his fade in polls, Walker took a more aggressive approach, promising to “wreak havoc” on Washington. “This season seems to be a little more about acting and showboating than what you can accomplish”. “I believe the New Hampshire primary will be critically important to determining who our next president will be”.

His problems aside, Walker had built up a substantial network of top-flight donors, advisers and supporters. “With that in mind, I will suspend my campaign immediately”, Walker said in a Madison press conference.

Compared with Trump, Carly Fiorina and Bush, Walker is a man of modest means: His father was a preacher and his mother was a part-time secretary, and he has earned government salaries for most of his adult life. Rubio and Walker have expressed admiration for one another on the trail – with Walker even openly floating Rubio as his potential vice president – and both have tried to bridge the GOP establishment with its more conservative grassroots.

That earned Walker a sharp rebuke from Republicans who stood with him as protesters occupied the capitol for weeks in opposition to the measure.