Fresh from a trip to the Far East, Gov. Tim Pawlenty headed to the very near East Monday, and spoke at a fundraiser near Milwaukee for Scott Walker, the Republican candidate for governor in Wisconsin.

And the Badger Herald — an independent publication at the University of Wisconsin-Madison — notes Pawlenty’s “high national profile” as a plus for Walker, but the the visit might be as much in Pawlenty’s interest as Walker’s.

It quotes Jay Heck, executive director of Common Cause in Wisconsin, saying that trips like this to help other candidates also promotes Pawlenty’s own presidential ambitions, and is a strategy used by many potential presidential candidates.

And it doesn’t hurt that Wisconsin is considered a battleground state.

Heck told the Badger Herald that he believes Pawlenty’s visit, rather than changing voters’ minds, will primarily bring in money for the Walker campaign. Barrett has more campaign money, and Walker may use this event to catch up on his fundraising, Burden added.

A poll Sunday showed Walker ahead of Democratic candidate Tom Barrett, 51 percent to 43 percent. But Barrett currently leads in fundraising. But that was before Pawlenty’s visit.