2008 Presidential Campaign Blog

GOVERNOR TOMMY THOMPSON ENDORSES JOHN MCCAIN

GOVERNOR TOMMY THOMPSON ENDORSES JOHN MCCAIN

ARLINGTON, VA -- U.S. Senator John McCain's presidential campaign today announced that Tommy Thompson, former Governor of Wisconsin and Secretary of Health and Human Services, has endorsed John McCain for president.

"Today, I am proud to announce my endorsement of John McCain for president," said Governor Thompson. "John McCain has a lifetime of service to our country, and he is the leader best prepared to serve as commander in chief from day one. His conservative record and personal leadership qualities give us the best chance of defeating the Democrats in November."

John McCain thanked Governor Thompson for his support, saying, "I admire Tommy for his service to our country and his leadership in the Republican Party. He is a dedicated public servant and, I am honored to have his support."

Thompson was born in Elroy, Wisconsin. He is a former Captain in the United States Army and Army Reserve. His political career began in 1966 when he was elected to the Wisconsin State Assembly, after earning his law degree at the University of Wisconsin Law School. In 1973 he was elected assistant Assembly minority leader and, in 1981, he was elected to serve as Assembly minority leader. He is married with three adult children. Governor Thompson served Wisconsin for an unprecedented four terms as Governor from 1987 to 2001. Governor Thompson served as the 7th U.S. Secretary of Health and Human Services from 2001 to 2005.      

Thompson Thanks Supporters, Exits Presidential Race

Thompson Thanks Supporters, Exits Presidential Race

Madison – Saying he has 'no regrets', Governor Tommy Thompson thanked his supporters Saturday night and officially left the campaign trail.

"I want to thank the people of Iowa who were welcoming and supportive as well as my volunteers and contributors from around the country," said Thompson. "I have no regrets about running. I felt my record as Governor of Wisconsin and Secretary of Health and Human Services gave me the experience I needed to serve as President, but I respect the decision of the voters. I am leaving the campaign trail today, but I will not leave the challenges of improving health care and welfare in America."

Thompson, who was elected to serve four terms as Wisconsin Governor and four years as Secretary of Health and Human Services, began exploring a presidential bid last December. Weeks ago, he told supporters and the news media that if he did not do well in the Iowa Straw Poll, he would step aside and leave others to work for the Republican nomination.

"No candidate is more experienced than Governor Thompson and no candidate worked harder; but sometimes the dynamics just aren't there to bring about a victory," said Steve Grubbs, Senior Advisor to Thompson's campaign. "The Governor's staff was deeply committed to him and to his candidacy. If we could have willed a victory, we would have."

Thompson will return to the private sector as well as his non-profit work after a brief time off.

"I have very much enjoyed my years in public service and I am comforted by the fact that I think I made a difference for people during that time. I hope to continue working to serve others over the next few years," said Thompson.

Tommy Thompson Iowa Straw Poll Photos

Thompson Calls To Eradicate Breast Cancer By 2015

Thompson Calls to Eradicate Breast Cancer by 2015 Sets Himself Apart as the Healthcare Candidate

As Secretary, Tommy Thompson made a difference by helping seniors with prescription drugs. Today, during the ABC Presidential Debate, Thompson called for eradicating breast cancer by 2015.

"I know that there are treatments and potential remedies that we may not be considering in the United States. It's essential that this be a global fight with the best minds from across the globe engaged in the effort."

"Here's the bottom line: The only way to find the cure for breast cancer is for the President of the United States to set a goal and motivate our government and private companies to reach it. We can afford to do it and it's the right thing to do," said Thompson

The key points to the Thompson Breast Cancer Plan include:

1) Recruit a successful corporate executive to lead a team of doctors, researchers, nurses and breast cancer victims who will be charged with setting benchmark goals and making recommendations for research funding.

2) Establish fifteen $10 million prizes for corporations, Universities or research centers that solve benchmark problems related to curing breast cancer.

3) Double the budget of the National Institute of Health to $56 billion from its current level of $28 billion. Direct the additional funding to worthy public and private research projects.

4) Travel to key countries in the world recruiting their governments and research universities to join the effort. Tommy Thompson will re-establish America's leadership role and do it with medical and health care breakthroughs.

5) Create an open source research community on the Internet where research can be organized and discussions can be conducted with experts. This online community will be a centralized repository for research where all of the world's people can contribute their time, money or expertise toward helping with this global fight.

At the ABC News debate in Des Moines, Iowa, this morning, former Governor and HHS Secretary Tommy Thompson clearly demonstrated his knowledge and understanding of the problems facing the health care industry, and separated himself from the field of candidates by outlining his plans for reform.

Thompson's plan for health care reform includes the following points:

We must build a system centered on preventive medicine, rather than curative. In this country, we wait until people get sick and then spend billions of dollars to try to make them well again. Why not invest up front in keeping our families healthy in the first place?

We must use information technology to cut costs, reduce medical errors and create a more efficient health care system. Our doctors use the latest technology to cure your illnesses, but manila folders to keep track what's wrong with you. The industry needs to work together to overcome the barriers to implementing information technology in the health field. We must make sure different systems to communicate with each other, so the information on a patient from a doctor's office in Iowa is useful to a hospital in California. Doctors, nurses and technicians must know how to use this new technology and health care providers must be sure the technology is having the intended effect - that is, to save money and more importantly, to save lives.

Third, we must use the private sector and public sector to provide health insurance for all. It is a basic common sense approach to keeping people healthy and reining in health care costs. Governor Thompson proposes requiring states to organize purchasing pools among the uninsured. Such an arrangement would provide health insurance for families, while allowing the purchasing pools to negotiate better prices for care. It is unfair that the uninsured are often the only ones to be charged full price for health care, simply because they don't have the purchasing power of those with health insurance.

We must, once and for all, make sure health care and long-term care is affordable. For government, our Medicare and Medicaid systems will soon break the budgets – and families across America are grappling with how to pay for long-term care for themselves and for their parents. This isn't a problem that will go away if we simply ignore it.

Thompson Iraq Plan From ABC News Iowa Debate

Thompson Iraq Plan From ABC News Iowa Debate

The next President needs to focus on setting the stage for peace in Iraq not inciting backlash from peaceful Muslims across the world.

Additionally in the debate, Governor Thompson outlined his three point plan for Iraq. First, Governor Thompson calls on the Iraq government to hold a vote, reaffirming their support for American troops in Iraq. Second, Iraq should be divided into 18 geographically defined states; where Sunnis will elect Sunnis, Shi'ites will elect Shi'ites, and Kurds will elect Kurds. Second, oil revenues should be split equally between the federal government, the state governments, and every man woman and child, just is done in Alaska to jumpstart the Iraq economy.

Tommy Thompson "Common Sense Solutions" Tour Across Iowa

Thompson Hits Airwaves With Immigration Plan

Thompson Hits Airwaves with Immigration Plan

Des Moines, IA – Today, Tommy Thompson’s Presidential campaign began airing a new sixty second radio ad focused on Governor Thompson’s plan for real immigration reform. 

In the advertisement, Governor Thompson outlines his common sense plan to address immigration.    First, Governor Thompson opposes any legislation that creates amnesty for illegal aliens. 

“We must support the rule of law in our country.  People who are found to be in the country illegally should be returned to their home countries and should have to wait at the end of the line, behind people who are seeking to enter the country or become citizens legally,” said Thompson.   

Second, Governor Thompson would complete the border security wall that Congress authorized last year within the first 150 days of his presidency.

Third, Thompson would pardon the border patrol agents who are being imprisoned for doing nothing more than their jobs.

And last, Thompson would require non-citizens who want to work in the United States to use a tamper proof ID card and penalize employers who do not verify with it.

Thompson added, “Every immigrant who wants to be a citizen of the United States must learn our American language – English.  It’s the language of opportunity and success in the U.S.”

The radio advertisement is airing statewide in Iowa.

Tommy Thompson Sees Strong Growth In Q2 Fundraising

Thompson Sees Strong Growth in Q2 Fundraising

( Des Moines, IA) – The Tommy Thompson campaign announced that its second quarter fundraising effort showed strong growth over its first quarter fundraising. The Thompson campaign raised $473,126 in Q2 after raising $328,000 in Q1.

“We are certainly pleased at the strong growth in our fundraising. We've kept our overhead low and maintained a disciplined budget. To date, we're able to run a campaign equal to that of the better funded candidates despite the differences in funding,” said Thompson.

The Thompson campaign has successfully executed a strong Iowa-New Hampshire campaign over the last six months. The Thompson campaign has launched a statewide media campaign in Iowa and will begin a statewide RV tour on July 6th covering 100 plus communities.

Steve Grubbs, Senior Advisor to the Thompson campaign said, “We saw a strong growth in fundraising. Granted, we're not swimming in Barack Obama money, but we have what we need to execute our strategy. We asked our supporters to give us a chance to run the type of campaign we need and they came through for us.”

Thompson Announces Iowa Bus Tour With Over 100 Stops

Thompson Announces Bus Tour with Over 100 Stops
Common Sense Solutions Tour Will Complete 99 County Promise

Des Moines – Appearing on Iowa Public Television’s Iowa Press, Governor Tommy Thompson announced a key component in his strategy for victory in the August 11th Straw Poll in Ames, IA. 

“We are about to launch our bus tour across Iowa.    I’m calling it my ‘Common Sense Solutions Tour.’ It will begin in Ames and end in Ames, just before the August 11th Straw Poll.  I will be making over 100 campaign stops and I am very excited about this bus tour!  By the end of the tour I will have been in every county in Iowa.  You know, the recent polls show that Iowans are looking for a candidate with commonsense solutions.   That’s what I’m bringing, I’ve spent a lifetime identifying problems, forming solutions and getting things done.”

With over 100 stops, Governor Thompson will be taking his ideas directly to the people of Iowa -- all of Iowa. The tour will complete Governor Thompson’s promise to visit all 99 counties in Iowa before the August 11th Straw Poll. 

“The Iowa tour has been part of our strategy from the very beginning, and we are very excited to get started.  The ‘Common Sense Solutions Tour’ is the culmination of the campaign’s efforts to introduce Governor Thompson and his campaign of ideas to Iowa. And in stark contrast to some other candidates, the tour is further proof of his commitment to Iowans. The first leg of the tour will have nearly 50 campaign stops alone,” remarked Chad Olsen, the campaign manager. “We are putting the finishing touches on our Iowa-made Winnebago, filling it up with ethanol, and preparing for a great 6 weeks of campaigning face-to-face with Iowans from Rock Rapids to Keokuk, and everywhere in between!”

The Common Sense Solutions Tour will kick off in Ames Friday, July 6, 2007 at Prairie Moon Winery in Ames, IA at 7:00p.m.   

Statement by Governor Thompson On Ames Straw Poll Participation

Statement by the Honorable Tommy Thompson:

From the beginning, a big part of our campaign plan has included the August Straw Poll held in Ames, Iowa. We felt that it would be an opportunity for our campaign to show the strength of our support as well as an opportunity to take our message to a national audience watching on television.

With the recent announcements by Senator McCain and Mayor Giuliani that they will not be participating in the straw poll, it’s clear that the competitive landscape has changed.

The straw poll is an expensive exercise even for campaigns with big war chests. Dollars spent on the straw poll are dollars that cannot be spent on direct voter contact. For a campaign to decide to participate in the straw poll means that there are other important campaign activities it cannot participate in.

Nevertheless, the Iowa Straw Poll has become a recent tradition in American campaign politics. During a month with very little hard news, it provides our nation a chance to listen to the major Republican presidential candidates discuss the issues important to the future of our country. The Ames Straw Poll is the best in American politics. More than 20,000 voters from across the state will descend on a town in the middle of Iowa to support their candidate and participate in the greatest electoral system the world has ever known. This is – in every way – a good thing for our country, for Iowa and our Party.

To skip the straw poll is to show fear...fear that a campaign's lack of support will finally be revealed and fear the entire country will see that the king has no clothes.

There's no doubt the stakes are high: eight years ago, four candidates dropped out as a result of the summer straw poll. And with all of the candidates investing heavily in Iowa, candidates who finish in the bottom half of the straw poll should withdraw from the race and support the rest of the field.

I believe the voters of Iowa and voters across the country deserve the chance to hear the uncensored comments of Republicans running for President. If Mayor Giuliani and Senator McCain choose not to take advantage of this opportunity, then I think it says more about their campaigns than it does the Iowa Straw Poll.

I will participate in the Iowa Straw Poll on August 11th. We will take our campaign of conservative solutions directly to the people of Iowa and the United States and let the votes fall where they may. Regardless of the outcome on August 11th, at least it will never be said that I was afraid to put my campaign's organization up against the rest. Lets start the race.