Walker defends not answering foreign policy questions

Gov. Scott Walker is defending his decision not to answer questions about foreign policy following a speech he gave at a prestigious London think tank dedicated to discussing international affairs.

Walker said in a Thursday conference call that he told organizers of the event at Chatham House that he would be talking about foreign trade and investment.

“This isn’t something we decided on the last minute when this was arranged,” said Walker. “They knew what our topic was, they asked for a description, they asked for for a title, they asked for a narrative, they knew full well, they were advised in advance that we weren’t going to talk about foreign policy or about presidential politics. They knew and they had every opportunity to decline the invitation to speak there.”

Walker was asked a series of questions from the moderator and audience for 45 minutes.

Walker declined to answer, saying there is a tradition not to comment on such issues while on foreign soil out of respect to the president.

Chatham House spokeswoman Nicola Norton says Walker’s team was notified that he would be asked questions following the speech and “we don’t censor questions.”