Raleigh, N.C. — Walter Dalton apparently gave his Republican rival a complement yesterday. 

The Democratic candidate for governor spoke to an AFL-CIO meeting in Raleigh Thursday and said that his Republican rival, Pat McCrory, would mirror the position of Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker. From the Charlotte Observer:

“Scott Walker is his hero, and state employees are his target,” Dalton said. “If you elect my opponent, you will have Scott Walker in North Carolina for four years.”

Walker is a favorite of many conservatives because of his effort to strip state employees in Wisconsin of their collective bargaining rights – and because he beat back a recall effort by Democrats. McCrory has said he would like Walker to come campaign for him.

Dalton said that when McCrory ran for governor in 2008, he vowed to “fire 10,000” state employees.

The Dalton campaign said the reference to 10,000 employees was a comment McCrory made during an interview with SEANC’s political committee in 2008, in which McCrory was talking about privatization. The Dalton campaign cited Cliff Brown, a former SEANC president, who participated in the interview, who confirmed the quote.

But Dana Cope, the SEANC president, said a review of the recording of the 2008 interview Thursday showed that while McCrory talked about his privatization efforts as Charlotte mayor, he made no reference to reducing the state workforce by 10,000 or by any other amount. SEANC endorsed Democrat Bev Perdue in 2008.

McCrory appears to like the comparison to Walker. After lunch today, the following news release came from the Republican's campaign: 

Raleigh, N.C. – The Pat McCrory Committee is proud to announce that on September 25, Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker will campaign with Pat McCrory in Raleigh and Greensboro, with a potential additional stop. Details are still being finalized.

"I look forward to proudly welcoming Scott Walker to North Carolina, a reform-minded governor that is showing strong leadership in Wisconsin," said Pat McCrory. "He turned a $3.6 billion deficit into a surplus without raising taxes – while improving education. That's the kind of leadership we need in North Carolina to start a Carolina comeback."