Walker did not outright say what he would do, but the Facebook post was the strongest sign yet that he is leaning toward signing some, if not all, of the bills passed by the state's Republican-controlled legislature in a lame duck session that would strip or limit the powers of Gov.-elect Tony Evers, a Democrat.
The measures, which have received bipartisan criticism in recent days, would limit early voting, codify Medicaid work requirements and potentially block the incoming attorney general from withdrawing the state from a lawsuit over Obamacare.
Walker took to Facebook to "set the record straight," as he put it, outlining the powers Evers will retain "regardless of what I do with the bills passed in the state Legislature last week."
"The new governor will still have some of the strongest powers of any governor in the nation if these bills become law. He will have the power to veto legislation and he will have some of the broadest line-item veto authority of any governor in the nation," he wrote. "None of these things will change regardless of what I do with the bills passed in the state Legislature last week."
Walker goes on to lay out his criteria for signing the legislation: Transparency, accountability, stability and protecting taxpayers.
"These are the reasonable criteria we will use to review the legislation passed during the extraordinary session," he writes.
Unmentioned in Walker's post, however, are some of the more controversial changes in the bills, including limiting early voting -- a move that is seen to benefit Republicans -- and formalizing Walker priorities like stricter work requirements for Medicaid.
Walker is taking his time with the bills, which passed the Republican-controlled Senate and Assembly last week. The governor has yet to request the bill from the legislature and has six days, not counting Sundays, to either sign or veto the measures once they reach his desk. The bills will be automatically sent to him on December 20 if he doesn't not request them sooner.
Evers has asked the governor not to limit his power during the lame duck. The two spoke last week and Evers said on Sunday that he was "not particularly encouraged" that Walker would veto the legislation after the conversation.
While Evers and other Democrats have reserved the right to sue if the bills are signed, Democrats have also looked to pressure Walker by arguing signing the measures will damage his legacy in Wisconsin.
"It's around Scott Walker's legacy," Evers said on NBC's "Meet the Press." "He has the opportunity to change us and validate the will of the people that voted on November 6."
And while many Republicans in Wisconsin have backed the bills -- especially Assembly Speaker Robin Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald, two men who will gain more power if the bills pass -- some Republicans have criticized the bills and Walker's consideration of them.
"I am hopeful is that Gov. Walker will discuss with Gov.-elect Evers and make some commitments as to how we're going to operate the state of Wisconsin," former Republican Gov. Scott McCallum told WISN 12 NEWS. "It becomes very dangerous; we keep going down this slope of getting worse and worse, and as I tell people: I didn't like this when Democrats did it, why would I like it when Republicans do it?"
And Charlie Sykes, a Republican commentator from Wisconsin who has deep ties to Walker, wrote last week that the governor should veto the bills.
"Signing the lame-duck legislation would be an especially classless way for Walker to leave office; it will tarnish his reputation in ways that I'm not sure he grasps," he wrote. "And, frankly, it's just not worth it."
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