Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker (R) predicted he won’t be recalled from office in June, the Chicago Tribune reports.

Said Walker: “I think when we win, it will not only reaffirm what we did. It will send a powerful message to every politician…in our state and even in our city governments who are trying to take on the tough issues and do the right thing. It will send a powerful, powerful message that you can stick your neck out, you can make the tough choices and there will be voters helping you along the way.”

Here’s a potential problem for President Obama’s re-election bid: “New state laws designed to fight voter fraud could reduce the number of Americans signing up to vote in this year’s presidential election by hundreds of thousands,” Reuters reports.

“Voting laws passed by Republican-led legislatures in a dozen states during the past year have sharply restricted voter-registration drives that typically target young, low-income, African-American and Hispanic voters — groups that have backed the Democratic president by wide margins.”

Sen. Orrin Hatch (R-UT) “came up just short of the support needed to claim his party’s nomination for the seventh time, forcing him into a primary election with state Sen. Dan Liljenquist in June,” the Salt Lake Tribune reports.

“After two rounds of balloting, Hatch had the support of 59.1 percent, a handful of votes short of the 60 percent threshold to claim the nomination outright. He’ll face his first primary election since his 1976 victory.”

A new Rasmussen poll in Ohio shows President Obama leading Mitt Romney by four points in the all important swing state, 46% to 42%.

Former Rep. Virgil Goode (R-VA) was picked as the Constitution Party’s nominee for president, according to Ballot Access News.

He is the first Constitution Party presidential nominee to have held important elected office.

At a party meeting in Arizona, RNC members and state GOP chairmen were welcomed into a private reception with Mitt Romney “only after signing a form pledging to support Romney as a delegate to the national convention in Tampa,” CNN reports.

“All three members of Iowa’s conservative RNC delegation… attempted to enter the reception but were rebuffed after refusing to sign the delegate pledge. The dispute became heated in the hallway outside, with the Iowans demanding to know why they had to sign a form to get their picture taken with the former Massachusetts governor.”

Said one: “The don’t trust us. I have said I will support the nominee when we have a nominee, no ifs, ands or buts.”

Jeb Bush told NewsMax that he would consider being Mitt Romney’s running mate.

Said Bush: “Well I’d consider it, but I doubt I’ll get a call, and I don’t know if it’s the right thing for me to do. I didn’t run for president for a similar kind of reason, so I’m all in to try to help him get elected.”

Matthew Jaffe has a tip for prospective GOP vice presidential nominees: Start by saying you don’t want the job.

Four years ago, when speculation swirled over who Barack Obama would pick as his running mate, Joe Biden told them, “I’m not the guy.” Of course, just days later Biden was unveiled as Obama’s pick. 

In 2000, Dick Cheney said, “I have no absolutely no desire to go back to government.” But at the same time, Cheney was leading George W. Bush’s search for a running mate, a search that settled on Cheney himself. 

A new Rasmussen poll in Ohio shows President Obama leading Mitt Romney by four points in the all important swing state, 46% to 42%.

Politico reports that “under the table, there is pervasive pessimism among Republicans about Romney’s prospects this fall. It’s apparent in rampant discussions about which Republicans will run in 2016 — talk that obviously presupposes a loss in November — and it’s downright glaring in private conversations with GOP officials on Capitol Hill and in consulting shops across Washington.”

“And the skepticism about Romney isn’t just a Beltway phenomenon. Rank-and-file Republican voters are also uncertain he can win, though it’s the chattering class that is most bearish.”

However, a National Journal Political Insiders poll finds 65% of insiders “very excited” about Romney as the GOP nominee while 30% are “somewhat excited.”

Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels (R) endorsed Mitt Romney for president this week, but in an interview with the Indianapolis Star he wasn’t so kind to the likely GOP nominee.

Said Daniels: “You have to campaign to govern, not just to win… Spend the precious time and dollars explaining what’s at stake and a constructive program to make life better. And as I say, look at everything through the lens of folks who have yet to achieve.”

He paused and added: “Romney doesn’t talk that way.”

Sen. Joe Manchin (D-WV) told National Journal he does not know if he will vote for President Obama or Mitt Romney for president in November.

Said Manchin: “I’ll look at the options.”

“That stance is at odds with almost every other Democrat who is up for reelection this year or is from a state that Romney is likely to win. And it’s an indication of the unique effort Manchin has made to establish his independence from Obama and other Democrats.”

New Fox News polls show President Obama with leads over Mitt Romney is two key battleground states.

Florida: Obama 45%, Romney 43%

Ohio: Obama 45%, Romney 39%