WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Rand Paul’s odds of winning the Republican nomination for president have never looked longer.

Kentucky Republican Paul’s unconventional foreign policy views, writes National Journal, are the problem. With the militant group ISIS amassing territory in the Middle East, Russia remaining belligerent against Ukraine and the threat of a nuclear-armed Iran growing, the public has taken a hawkish turn. Paul, meanwhile, has veered to the left. He’s the only Senate Republican opposing the re-implementation of tough sanctions on Iran, for example, cosponsoring a less-punitive alternative bill with liberal Sen. Barbara Boxer. Most of Paul’s potential Republican opponents for the nomination aren’t even hedging their bets on a more assertive U.S. foreign policy, National Journal writes.

Wisconsin budget, national message: Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, another possible contender for the GOP presidential nomination, unveiled a budget for his state on Tuesday that the New York Times calls a mission statement for Republican voters beyond Wisconsin. Walker told lawmakers in a speech that the plan will use reforms to “create a government that is limited in scope and ultimately more effective, more efficient and more accountable to the public.” The budget relies partly on spending cuts to state universities, and steers clear of tax increases.

Walker courts Romney donors: Politico reports Walker is moving to seize on Mitt Romney’s withdrawal from the presidential race, and show he can compete with Jeb Bush as a top-tier candidate. The Wisconsin governor is aggressively courting Romney donors, planning a March fundraising trip to Bush’s home state of Florida and has just hired a top Washington fundraiser. Several of Walker’s biggest contributors from the past five years, however, said they are not yet committed to his expected 2016 bid.

Obama meeting ‘dreamers’: President Barack Obama will meet Wednesday with a group of young undocumented immigrants on Wednesday as the White House ramps up its fight with Republicans over immigration reform. The GOP-led House has passed legislation that would extend funding for the Department of Homeland Security and roll back Obama’s executive orders protecting millions of undocumented immigrants from deportation. The Washington Post writes the five immigrants, known as “dreamers,” who will meet with Obama in the Oval Office have received protections from deportation under a program Obama implemented in 2012.

Pentagon pick faces Congress:Obama’s pick for defense secretary is poised to tell Republicans in Congress on Wednesday he will push to trim wasteful spending and may eventually consider reviewing the schedule for withdrawing U.S. troops from Afghanistan. Reuters writes Ashton Carter, a former Pentagon No. 2, is expected to have a smoother ride than did outgoing Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel two years ago. But some Republicans on the Senate Armed Services Committee are expected to grill him about Obama’s drawdown schedule in Afghanistan, as well as U.S. military actions in Iraq, Syria and Ukraine.