I Bet K Street Lobbyist Tommy Thompson Wishes He Didn't Approve This Message-- A Game Loser In Wisconsin

A desperate last minute smear from Tommy Thompson's campaign is probably the final nail in his own political coffin. The biggest newspaper in Wisconsin, Milwaukee's Journal-Sentinel ran a big story about how Thompson's ad is another right-wing lie, which is basically all you get out of that campaign anyway.

Republican U.S. Senate candidate Tommy Thompson uses military veterans, images of the fallen twin towers and pictures of 9/11 victims to criticize Democratic rival Tammy Baldwin in a new television ad.

...Let’s look at the core claim in this ad: That Baldwin, a U.S. House member from Madison, voted against a tribute to Sept. 11 victims.

The claim stems from a Sept. 14, 2006, vote on a resolution commemorating the fifth anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks. Baldwin was one of 22 House members-- 21 Democrats and one Republican [Ron Paul]-- to vote against the resolution.

Thompson campaign spokeswoman Lisa Boothe said the matter was pretty cut and dried.

"It is simple, she was one of 22 members that voted against it, an incredibly small margin.  This was a near unanimous vote."

So there is some truth in Thompson claim.

But that’s far from the entire story.

At the time, Baldwin delivered a speech on the House floor denouncing Republicans for adding language to the routine commemoration that she did not agree with.

According to the Congressional Record, here’s what she said Sept. 13, 2006:

"Mr. Speaker, on the fifth anniversary of the worst attack on American soil, my Republican colleagues have disgracefully politicized what should have been a solemn and sincere resolution.

"This week we are mourning the tragic losses of innocent lives as well as commemorating the unsurpassed heroism that was on display that day.

"We are expressing our gratitude to our nation’s law enforcement officers for their tireless dedication to make our country safer; and we are reaffirming our nation’s resolve to combat terrorism and secure our homeland. But rather than offering a bipartisan resolution that unites us on this solemn occasion, the Republican leadership converted the bill into an endorsement of the Patriot Act, punitive immigration bills, and other highly controversial measures, which many of my constituents oppose.

"This bill was cynically transformed from a memorial resolution to an endorsement of President Bush’s failed policies. The Republicans show enormous disrespect to the 9/11 victims and families by playing election year politics with something as solemn as the fifth anniversary of 9/11; I will vote against the bill."

The publication CQ Weekly, which covers Congress, described the resolution this way in a Sept. 18, 2006 piece:

"But this year’s version was different. Taken up 54 days before one of the most pivotal elections in a decade, the measure afforded Republicans and Democrats a platform from which to argue about which party is more determined to prevail in the war on terror."

The story added: "Republicans stuffed the bill with references to GOP-crafted measures that they say improve national security. Democrats, who voted for some of the bills listed in the resolution, wanted no references to new laws, and complained that framing the resolution that way made it too much of a political document."

Thompson’s ad shows a portion of a Sept. 14, 2006, headline from Baldwin’s hometown Capital Times--  "Baldwin rejects 9-11 tribute"-- but not the entire headline, which read: "Baldwin rejects 9/11 tribute, saying it insults victims, families."

The Baldwin campaign notes that she has voted in favor of a similar resolution honoring 9/11 victims nine times-- in 2001, ‘02, ‘04, ‘05, ‘07, ‘08, ‘09 ‘10 and ‘11.

The campaign also points out that one day before the 2006 vote, Baldwin voted in favor of a resolution calling for "establishing a national memorial at the World Trade Center site to commemorate and mourn the events of February 26, 1993, and September 11, 2001."

Thompson said his Democratic challenger voted against a resolution honoring 9/11 victims. Technically he’s correct. Baldwin voted against the measure in 2006-- and criticized Republicans for adding in references to the Patriot Act, immigration bills, and other controversial matters.

But Baldwin has voted nine times in favor of similar resolutions and the day before the vote in question supported creation of a memorial at the World Trade Center site.

Thompson’s statement contains an element of truth, but leaves out critical information that would give a different impression. That’s our definition of Mostly False.

This week Wisconsin's Professional Fire Fighters Union, answered Thompson with a far more powerful ad of their own (the one up top) asking Thompson if he has "no sense of decency." Here's Tammy's own ad that repsonding to Thompson's shamless and despicable smear:



Russ Feingold said, “Governor Thompson’s latest TV ad is a disgrace. He deliberately misrepresents Tammy Baldwin’s vote, and her strong opposition to playing politics with the 9/11 tragedy. It’s sad that former Governor Thompson is stooping so low to try to attract support. He’ll find that it just won’t work.”

In a press statement, Tammy quoted John Feal, a well respected 9/11 advocate who lost half of one foot at Ground Zero and runs the group the FealGood Foundation. “Tammy Baldwin was one of the first sponsors of our bill outside the New York area.  Her office was one of the ones helping us set up meetings when we couldn’t.

“I don’t think he’s right and he never should have brought something like that up, because it’s not true. She didn’t disagree because of that 9/11 part, she only disagreed to the other stuff that was added in later. I ended up coming home ill. I’ve had a rough time this year. Sometimes I can talk, sometimes I can’t. I’ve had pneumonia, and sinus infections and everything else. So, I’ve been sick, quite a bit,”said Judy Wolff, a Red Cross volunteer and Holmen native, who got ill after spending three weeks at Ground Zero.

For his own part, Thompson, who served as HHS Secretary for the Bush Administration, has been criticized by 9/11 first responders and New York’s Congressional delegation for not making health care a priority.

And after leaving HHS, Thompson then cashed in with a $11 million government contract to provide health care to 9/11 first responders, but left many of them without the care they were promised.

“Tommy Thompson is the product of the Bush administration, who wanted nothing to do with 9/11. When we went to Tommy Thompson in the Bush administration, to get health care funding he kept fighting us.  He’s making money off of 9/11, and he’s politicizing 9/11 for a campaign now, and to me he’s gone down a few notches on the scale of human beings,” Feal said.

In 2008 the Wisconsin State Journal reported, “The problem began in June, Wolff and others say, when Logistics Health Inc., of La Crosse, headed by former U.S. Health and Human Services Secretary Tommy Thompson, won an $11 million federal contract to provide medical care and health monitoring from the agency Thompson once led-- a decision that continues to raise eyebrows on Capitol Hill.”

They also reported:

“Dr. Jim Melius, chairman of the World Trade Center Medical Monitoring and Treatment Steering Committee, which coordinates care for 9/11 responders, said ‘I just don’t have any confidence that they (LHI) have the capacity or the understanding to do this,’ Melius said. ‘They are doing a disservice to these people. There are hundreds more in the medical treatment program and thousands more that need medical monitoring, and they’re not getting it.’”

The Associated Press reported: “A company run by an ex-Bush administration official and hired by the government to provide medical care to Sept. 11 recovery workers has been slow to take up the job, workers and advocates say. They also reported, “‘I have absolutely no help from anybody,’ said Ed Persico of Missoula, Mont., who was a Red Cross volunteer at a New York City landfill where the ground zero debris was examined for human remains.”

9/11 responders seem completely united against Thompson who-- as someone whose first and only instincts were to figure out how to personally profit from the tragedy-- has now lied about a political opponent who has always supported them fully and strenuously. FactCheck.org examined Thompson's ad and his claims and dubbed the ad "false and vicious"-- and that pretty much sums up what Wisconsin voters are seeing in a formerly popular, formerly mainstream governor. He moved away to Washington and now he's just plain false and vicious. And now even Republican strategists are ruing the day Thompson brought this up and started the ad war.

“I just watched them in order. Production quality of [Thompson]‘s ad is very good, the people talking are sincere, believable, seems like a very powerful hit. Then, I watched the response, seems to hit back very strongly and well. Soft spoken, sad, not over the top,” one top Republican media strategist said in an email to Roll Call. “While I thought the original was powerful, I think the response wins hands down, by not only calling [Thompson]‘s ad a cheap shot, but adding the seemingly devastating info about [Thompson] profiting so much from that very issue.”

The media strategist continued: “Wow. One would have to say that [Thompson's] team must have felt they needed to throw a long ball, because they had to consider the possibility of that response.”

The Blue America PAC only endorsed 3 candidates for Senate this cycle, Elizabeth Warren, Bernie Sanders and Tammy. Please watch Thompson's filth below and the consider helping Tammy win this one.