"He's sort of keeping up with the Joneses:" Governor Walker inches closer to a run for president

MILWAUKEE -- Governor Scott Walker takes a step closer to a run for president -- possibly the last step before a formal announcement.

Walker has still not declared he is running for President. He has indicated that won't occur until after the Wisconsin Legislature passes a state budget, but he has inched ever so closely to doing it with the appointment of a presidential fundraising committee.

This also means he no longer has to rely solely on his super PAC.

"When he had a 527 supporting him, he had no legal control of it but there were no legal limitations or contributions. And there was no disclosure of contributions. The step he took today was a step toward becoming a formal candidate but it means that now there will be disclosure on contributions and there will be limits on contributions," said Mordecai Lee, UW-Milwaukee Urban Planning Professor.

Walker is trending high in the polls, but in the last few weeks there have been several declarations of candidacy from others which may have compelled Walker to take this step now.

"I suspect that Governor Walker was afraid he was sort of losing some attention. By creating an exploratory committee, by being so formal about the fact that he is going to be running for president, he's sort of keeping up with the Joneses. He's getting the same degree of media attention as these other candidates are getting by declaring that they're running for president," said Lee.

Walker is expected to enter the race once he signs the state budget. That's expected to happen in mid-July -- although the legislature is currently at an impasse.

Only declared candidates will be allowed to participate in the presidential debates, the first one is happening in less than two months.