Jeffrey Lord: Is Scott Walker the Next Calvin Coolidge?

[Jeffrey Lord is a former Reagan White House political director and author. He writes from Pennsylvania at jlpa1@aol.com.]

"There is no right to strike against the public safety by anyone, anywhere, any time…"
-- Massachusetts Governor Calvin Coolidge to AFL leader Samuel Gompers on the"right" of Boston police to strike, September 14, 1919

"…I can't afford to have a fire or crime committed where there's a gap in service. And it ultimately just boils down to public safety…. This is our moment, this is our time to change the course of history."
-- Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker to NBC's Meet the Press moderator David Gregory, February 27, 2011

Is Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker the next Calvin Coolidge?

Is America witnessing once again the rise of an unassuming, non-charismatic anonymous state governor -- who suddenly rockets onto a national ticket and eventually into the White House by popular demand? All because of an unflinching stand against government unions?

With Republicans and conservatives busy divining whether Sarah Palin can win, if Mitt Romney is or should be toast because of RomneyCare and who is the real RINO -- Huckabee or Daniels or Christie -- America's television screens are being dominated by two people. The first is your standard Middle Eastern despot of the moment -- Mubarak yesterday, Qaddafi today, somebody else tomorrow. The second is entirely unexpected. That would be the pleasant-looking, black-haired guy with the bald spot and the distinctly Wisconsin accent that reminds you of exactly why Greta Van Susteren talks the way she does and what it means to be a serious Green Bay fan....