5 Politicians Scrutinized Way More Than Walker

To be fair, Scott Walker has caught a lot of flak in his time — but he is far from the most scrutinized politician. In a CNN interview on Tuesday, Walker deemed himself “the most scrutinized politician in America.” And as he pointed out, he's the only potential presidential candidate at this point to have survived a recall election. With the recall election, Walker had to face three elections in the span of just four years. Moreover, during his term as governor of Wisconsin, he certainly had to face a lot of criticism and upset in response to his anti-union efforts.

But while Walker has seen some inquiries into his policies, some politicians have been the subject of public scrutiny and media criticism for years now. Presidents past and present are obvious subjects of the nation’s scrutiny, but even some of Walker's probable competitors in the 2016 presidential primaries have arguably been dissected way more than he has. Hillary Clinton, for example, has had her each and every move analyzed way back since her days as first lady in the 1990s. Although Walker might have had the spotlight on him for a while, she's been under the microscope for years and years.

Within Walker's own party even, there are more viable contenders for the title of most scrutinized than he. For example, there's Chris Christie, who even catches the criticism of his own party. So, Walker, don’t be so quick to snag the title of most scrutinized. All eyes aren’t only on you.

Hillary Clinton

From Benghazi to her email practices as secretary of state to the Clinton Foundation’s funding, Clinton has certainly faced her fair share of questioning. Moreover, Clinton has faced a sort of scrutiny that none of her male competitors have, simply due to her gender. Alongside her policy work and her past accomplishments, she’s also fielded criticism about her pantsuits and her ponytails.

Jeb Bush

Bush has been the center of public scrutiny recently, following his flip-flops on the Iraq War and the extended anticipation of his official presidential announcement, which critics are saying is a strategic move so he's able to fundraise more money for himself through his super PAC before declaring himself a candidate.

Chris Christie

Christie has faced a tough run of it, especially with even Republicans saying he probably shouldn’t even try to run in 2016. Christie’s latest complaint on Thursday is that the media is being harder on him than on Clinton for his flubs. He complained that while Clinton’s email controversy has blown over, he’s still catching flak for the Bridgegate scandal in 2013, when several lanes of traffic on the George Washington Bridge got shut down.

President Obama

Maybe it’s part of the job, but Obama certainly hasn’t gotten any reprieve from scrutiny and criticism since he stepped into office in 2008. However, as First Lady Michelle Obama pointed out at a commencement speech at Tuskegee University, part of that scrutiny might arise from more than just partisanship and policies. Michelle said: “[People] will make assumptions about who they think you are based on their limited notion of the world. My husband and I know how frustrating that experience can be. We’ve felt the sting of those daily slights throughout our entire lives.”

George W. Bush

While George W. isn’t the Bush running in this presidential election, his name has certainly still made many an appearance. The question of whether he made the right decision in regards to the Iraq War way back in 2003 has often surfaced amongst Republican hopefuls. In fact, that’s the very question that’s been tripping his brother Jeb up.

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