Wednesday, November 16, 2005
The reincarnation of Tommy?
A new Strategic Vision (R) poll shows Sen. Herb Kohl (D-WI) barely edging former Gov. Tommy Thompson, 42% to 44%, in a race for U.S. Senate. (Given the polling source, it's probably safe to bet the spread is a little wider than that.) Anyway, Thompson has not yet indicated he'll run for U.S. Senate.
Interestingly, there seems to be considerable support among Wisconin voters for presidential bids by either Thompson (48%) or Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) (51%). Link
Ten years ago, I wrote an op-ed piece explaining why Thompson could never be president of the United States. Shortly afterward, he walked up to the man who had recently been my employer and said "Why is Russell King still working for you?" (It was more of a threat than a question.) I love the story, because it let me know I did the right thing.
After the op-ed piece ran in the Wisconsin State Journal, a member of the paper's editorial board called me up to ask "How'd you get that into print?" Beyond the obvious --- that the newspaper was a consistent cheerleader for Thompson -- the question was pointed at my specific comment in the op-ed to the effect that Thompson's personal life would not withstand the scrutiny it would be given by the national media (even if the local media look the other way). The caller said the newspaper staff could make a list of the governor's personal indiscretions, but that the publisher would not allow them to even hint about them. Personally, I'm concerned with the public, not private, "sins" of elected officials, so I don't care -- but there are many out there who do and who delight in using them to make thin-skinned officials uncomfortable.
Thompson's public transgressions, however, are of major concern to me. When governor, he tried to kill the personal care services for our disabled citizens with a frontal assault and tried to kill home health care services for our frail elderly via long-term financial starvation and regulatory strangulation. One of his top health administrators reportedly told a room for of home care providers that they were all crooks and that he considered it his mission to put them all out of business. The policies that flowed from the Thompson adminstration fit that mission quite nicely. And, as I've mentioned in an earlier post, the questionable relationship between nursing home contributions to Thompson's campaigns and nursing home funding and policies coming from Thompson's government made for an important series of stories in the state's largest newspaper, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
Then there's the neglect, dishonesty, incompetence and corruption of his adminstration when he headed the federal Health and Human Services....
If Tommy Thompson runs for anything other than dog catcher, expect me to spill tons of ink.
Interestingly, there seems to be considerable support among Wisconin voters for presidential bids by either Thompson (48%) or Sen. Russ Feingold (D-WI) (51%). Link
Ten years ago, I wrote an op-ed piece explaining why Thompson could never be president of the United States. Shortly afterward, he walked up to the man who had recently been my employer and said "Why is Russell King still working for you?" (It was more of a threat than a question.) I love the story, because it let me know I did the right thing.
After the op-ed piece ran in the Wisconsin State Journal, a member of the paper's editorial board called me up to ask "How'd you get that into print?" Beyond the obvious --- that the newspaper was a consistent cheerleader for Thompson -- the question was pointed at my specific comment in the op-ed to the effect that Thompson's personal life would not withstand the scrutiny it would be given by the national media (even if the local media look the other way). The caller said the newspaper staff could make a list of the governor's personal indiscretions, but that the publisher would not allow them to even hint about them. Personally, I'm concerned with the public, not private, "sins" of elected officials, so I don't care -- but there are many out there who do and who delight in using them to make thin-skinned officials uncomfortable.
Thompson's public transgressions, however, are of major concern to me. When governor, he tried to kill the personal care services for our disabled citizens with a frontal assault and tried to kill home health care services for our frail elderly via long-term financial starvation and regulatory strangulation. One of his top health administrators reportedly told a room for of home care providers that they were all crooks and that he considered it his mission to put them all out of business. The policies that flowed from the Thompson adminstration fit that mission quite nicely. And, as I've mentioned in an earlier post, the questionable relationship between nursing home contributions to Thompson's campaigns and nursing home funding and policies coming from Thompson's government made for an important series of stories in the state's largest newspaper, the Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel.
Then there's the neglect, dishonesty, incompetence and corruption of his adminstration when he headed the federal Health and Human Services....
If Tommy Thompson runs for anything other than dog catcher, expect me to spill tons of ink.
