Prosters in Wisconsin. (Photo Courtesy of Amber Appelbaum.)

"In total we have just over $1.7 billion worth of savings in this budget repair bill and for us to lock in that savings we need one thing in particular, and that is for those 14 state senators to come back to Wisconsin to debate this bill, to participate in democracy, and allow us to move forward," he said in his Wednesday press conference, which was held to address what he said to a reporter pretending to be billionaire David Koch in a prank phone call earlier that day.

"Bottom line, the things I've said privately are the same things I've said all along," he said of the call with "Koch," aka Ian Murphy, the editor of the Buffalo Beast.

State employees could begin receiving their layoff notices as early as next week, Walker said.

"As I mentioned the other morning in one of the local TV shows here in town, if we are not able to pass the bill by the end of the week, for us that ultimately means at-risk notices will have to go out and ultimately that would effect 1,500 individuals," he said. "On top of that, if we don't achieve the savings that are generated in this budget repair bill for debt restructuring by the end of the week, we lose out on about $16 million in savings."

In a statement to the AP, Walker said the layoffs would be effective immediately, but he didn't specify who would be targeted.

Walker acknowledged the state's 7.5 percent unemployment rate, noting, "[W]e cannot afford to have anybody laid off. But unfortunately we will have little to no choice if those senate Democrats continue to hold out from allowing the Senate to move forward on a vote on this measure."

The Republican governor has been at the center of the news cycle the past two weeks with his call for union pay cuts and the end of collective bargaining rights in Wisconsin. He is touting his proposal as the only way to close the state's $3.6 billion budget gap.

Last week 14 Democratic senators left the state to protest voting on Walker's bill, taking away the numbers needed to debate and vote on a bill. Meantime, tThousands of protesters have been going strong at the state capitol for eight straight days. Democrats say they will not return to the state until Walker opens negotiations.

Minnesota Democrat Keith Ellison said Walker is "basically taking on the position of a dictator."

“Because he says he won’t negotiate. That is something that is not in the spirit of a public servant, who just won’t even talk. He is putting himself in a position of being extreme, radical and reckless. And he’s going to fail,” Ellison said.

On Monday's CBS "Early Show," Wisconsin Democratic Senate Minority Leader Mark Miller said,"The governor has not done anything except insist that it has to be his way, all or nothing. The governor needs to recognize that this is a democracy and in a democracy you negotiate."

Walker has his fair share of detractors, but others, including many potential GOP presidential candidates, are coming out in support of the governor.

A spokesman for Wisconsin Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald said, "The possibility for 1,500 job cuts is something Walker has been saying from the beginning. I don’t know if the Senate Democrats were too busy MapQuesting their trip to pay attention to the legislation provisions, but it was out there from the start.”

The spokesman, Andrew Wellhouse, said the future of the state employees' jobs is "100 percent up to the Senate Democrats.”