海角大神

Recent days have been good for Wisconsin鈥檚 Republican Gov. Scott Walker. With a few deft moves, he鈥檚 sliding upwards in pundit rankings of GOP 2016 contenders, though he鈥檚 still in the middle of the pack of voter polls.

First, he did well with a speech at the Iowa Freedom Summit over the weekend. Many attendees judged him the breakout winner of this cattle call for presidential wannabes, which was otherwise notable mainly for a less popular Sarah Palin appearance.

Governor Walker talked forcefully about how he had defeated public sector unions in Wisconsin and then survived a subsequent recall vote. He said voters back a 鈥済o big鈥� agenda even if they don鈥檛 agree with all the particulars. He seemed personable and articulate, according to some commentators.

鈥淒espite the questions about [Walker鈥檚] charisma, he鈥檚 getting rave reviews for his passion in his appearance this weekend,鈥� writes Eliana Johnson of the right-leaning National Review.

Next, Walker made headway in the all-important Rush Limbaugh primary. OK, Rush did not in fact endorse him 鈥� the talkmeister does not always pick sides in GOP primaries. But he gave Walker a big shoutout for his Iowa performance.

鈥淵ou know that I believe Scott Walker is the blueprint for the Republican Party if they are serious about beating the left,鈥� said Limbaugh on his show Monday. 鈥淪cott Walker has shown how to do it.鈥�

If Limbaugh sticks to this line it could give Walker some protection against attacks on his views on immigration, which are suspiciously squishy to those on the right, points out Allahpundit of the "Hot Air" blog.

In the past, at times Walker has sounded as if he supports a pathway to legalization for illegal immigrants. He talks about a more accommodating legal immigration system as a way to solve the illegal immigration problem. Such a position might earn him some opposition from, say, Sen. Ted Cruz (R) of Texas.

鈥淗aving Rush Limbaugh talk [Walker] up now to grassroots righties as a proven winner will help deflect those attacks," writes the conservative Allahpundit.

Finally, Walker on Tuesday took a step that鈥檚 become the mark of seriousness about a presidential run: He announced formation of a fundraising committee. Jeb Bush used such a move as a means to indicate he鈥檚 really serious about a 2016 bid. Walker has now done the same thing with his Our American Revival organization.

But there鈥檚 a difference with Bush 鈥� Walker鈥檚 group is a so-called "527 committee," while Bush鈥檚 is a leadership political action committee. A 527 allows its sponsor more freedom, in the sense that it is legally able to raise unlimited amounts of money from any source and spend freely. It will have to report donors and expenditures, but to the Internal Revenue Service, not the Federal Election Commission.

They are prohibited from directly supporting or opposing a presidential candidate. That鈥檚 why they鈥檙e typically used for issue advocacy groups, not White House hopefuls. But at this point, of course, Walker is technically not a candidate. When he officially announces, he鈥檒l have to cut direct ties with Our American Revival.

You鈥檒l notice we said 鈥渨hen鈥� he announces, not 鈥渋f.鈥� Walker鈥檚 all in for 2016. That鈥檚 what really became clear this week.