Tommy Thompson in 2012 Wisconsin Senate Debates

On Government Reform: I've never been a lobbyist

In his successful recall effort June, Gov. Scott Walker portrayed public employees as privileged. In the Senate race, Thompson and Baldwin each claim to be the champion of the middle class.

"People are asking the question, 'Who's fighting for us?' versus 'Who's fighting for the big and powerful,'" Baldwin said in an Oct. 2 interview in Milwaukee. "Whose side are you on is a classic question in some elections, and I think it's coming to bear very particularly in this."

[One analyst] said Baldwin is trying to "to recapture the notion that the Democratic candidate is the populist candidate," he said. "She's trying hard to portray Thompson as the tool of the elite."

The Baldwin campaign has labeled Thompson a lobbyist for companies his Health & Human Services agency used to oversee, a charge that Thompson angrily denies. "I've never been a lobbyist," he said in an interview. "That's absolutely a lie." Thompson is working to define Baldwin as a big-spender, calling her "out of the mainstream."

Source: Bloomberg Businessweek on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debate Oct 5, 2012

On Budget & Economy: Balanced budget is first priority

If elected to the U.S. Senate, Thompson said one of the first needs he would support is "a balanced budget. I'd also ask every federal agency to reduce spending by 5 percent and give the Secretaries who run those departments the authority to do away with programs that weren't working."

Baldwin, if elected, "would end the war in Afghanistan, make it illegal for drug companies to profit from Medicare Part D, get rid of corporate welfare for big farms and big oil."

Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On Environment: Prevent invasive Asian Carp in Great Lakes

Other issues addressed in the debate included Asian Carp getting into the Great Lakes. Both candidates agreed they could not "tolerate or allow" Asian Carp to get into the Great Lakes. Thompson said once that invasive species got into those lakes "there would be no turning back--they'd be here to stay." Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On Government Reform: I'm a reformer: on welfare, healthcare, & taxes

Thompson said, "As governor I've cut taxes 91 times, reformed welfare [W-2 began in his administration], reformed health care [both Badger Care and SeniorCare began under Thompson, but were continued and enhanced under his successor], helped put Medicare Part D in place, and always tried to do what was right.

"I'm a reformer," Thompson emphasized, "and 742,000 jobs were created while I was governor." He also pointed to the Women's Health Foundation he founded along with his wife and their daughter.

Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On Government Reform: I'm a reformer: on welfare, healthcare, & taxes

"I'm a reformer," Thompson emphasized, "and 742,000 jobs were created while I was governor." He also pointed to the Women's Health Foundation he founded along with his wife and their daughter.

"My opponent is the Number One liberal in the House and the Number One spender in the House," he added.

"We're headed for a Depression," was Thompson's response when asked about the "fiscal cliff". "She introduced legislation and voted more than 100 times for tax increases. We cannot allow sequestration (to occur)," Thompson said, adding, "Isn't it sad Congress is waiting for January to solve (problems)."

Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On War & Peace: Helped build a hospital in Afghanistan for women & children

Baldwin, if elected, "would end the war in Afghanistan, make it illegal for drug companies to profit from Medicare Part D, get rid of corporate welfare for big farms and big oil."

Responding to questions on the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, Thompson noted he'd helped build a hospital in Afghanistan for women and children. Baldwin called building hospitals a part of "nation building." However, both candidates favored ending the war in Afghanistan.

Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On Budget & Economy: Tax-and-spend policies are out of the mainstream

Thompson opened the debate by labeling his opponent Tammy Baldwin "a taxer and a spender." He accused her of being out of the mainstream and failing to produce any changes in Washington. "Baldwin doesn't have a record to run on, so all she can do is try to get people not to like me," Thompson said.

Baldwin responded by labeling partisan name-calling "crazy."

Source: Wisconsin State Journal on 2012 Wisc. Senate debate Sep 28, 2012

On Jobs: FactCheck: Unemployment down while governor, but not 2.1%

Thompson claimed that when he was governor, Wisconsin's unemployment rate dipped to 2.1 percent and was lowest in the nation for more than three years running. Federal statistics refuted the "lowest in the nation" claim, and the 2.1 percent is on target only if you cite preliminary numbers from a less-preferred statistical method. We rated that claim False. Source: FactCheck.org on 2012 Wisc. Senate debate Sep 27, 2012

On Tax Reform: FactCheck: Tax cuts would save top 1% $87,000 each

We rated Half True a Baldwin claim that Thompson would give a $265,000 tax cut to millionaires like himself, while raising taxes on the middle class. The tax cut figure, as an average, is accurate, but the impact of Thomson's plan for middle-class taxpayers is far less clear.

Baldwin's claim that Thompson's tax plan would cut taxes by $87,000 for the top 1 percent of income earners was rated Mostly True. Thompson didn't refute the figure and experts said it was a good estimate, but that Thompson's plan lacks enough detail to know for sure.

A public employee union's claim that Thompson "supports massive tax cuts for corporations that outsource jobs" was partially accurate. Thompson would, under certain conditions, exempt from taxation U.S. companies' profits from overseas operations. But it's not clear whether U.S. employment would decline under this approach; and part of Thompson's plan provides incentives that could convince companies to bring profits back home.

Source: FactCheck.org on 2012 Wisc. Senate debate Sep 27, 2012

On Welfare & Poverty: Converted welfare into work-required benefit

Thompson was given a Mostly True for saying that while he was governor, "we ended welfare." His W-2 program didn't eliminate every program that might be considered a handout. But it did end the entitlement program most commonly known as welfare, replacing it with one that requires nearly all recipients to work for their benefits. Source: FactCheck.org on 2012 Wisc. Senate debate Sep 27, 2012

On Abortion: God-given rights begin at conception

Question 15. Do you believe that our natural God-given rights embodied in the Constitution begin at conception and continue until death?

Mark Neumann: Yes

Tommy Thompson: Yes