Tammy Baldwin in 2012 Wisconsin Senate Debates

On Principles & Values: I fight for us; my opponent fights for the big and powerful

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 Corporations: I've stood up to Wall Street and Big Oil

Baldwin, in her introductory statement, said "Washington isn't listening to the struggles of middle class families. I've stood up to Wall Street, to big oil and to the health insurance companies."

Thompson said, "As governor I've cut taxes 91 times, and always tried to do what was right. I'm a reformer," Thompson emphasized, "and 742,000 jobs were created while I was governor. My opponent is the Number One liberal in the House and the Number One spender in the House."

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

On Corporations: I've stood up to Wall Street and Big Oil

Baldwin, in her introductory statement, said "Washington isn't listening to the struggles of middle class families. I've stood up to Wall Street, to big oil and to the health insurance companies."

Baldwin countered with the suggestion "that words like conservative and liberal have lost their meanings." During the Bush Administration "there were two unfunded tax cuts, two unfunded wars and Medicare Part D--also unfunded, for a total of $3.5 trillion," she said.

Baldwin explained the "fiscal cliff is sequestration, which means across-the-board cuts. This is not the right prescription. We need investments in education and research to grow our economy," she added.

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

On Energy & Oil: Government should get out of subsidies to big oil

Baldwin told the debate audience, "You've seen two very different views. I'm for the Buffett Rule and a balanced approach to move the economy forward. I want the government to get out of subsidies to big oil and corporate farms. Medicare and Social Security should be bedrock guarantees," she concluded. Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On Tax Reform: Get rid of loopholes for outsourcing and capital gains

Asked about specific spending cuts each would make, Baldwin said she would "get rid of deductions and loopholes that encourage outsourcing of U.S. jobs and the ability to write off moving expenses for those taking overseas jobs." She would also eliminate the ability of "Hedge Fund managers to get their tax rates at 15 percent." Source: Madison Agri-View on 2012 Wisconsin Senate debates Oct 4, 2012

On War & Peace: End the Afghan war & end nation-building

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 Free Trade: FactCheck: Tried but failed to require US-made ship engines

We rated as Mostly False Baldwin's claim that she "led the fight to require the Coast Guard to buy their engines" from U.S. rather than foreign companies. The claim was off the mark in that her efforts, aimed at helping one Wisconsin manufacturer, never become law. Source: FactCheck.org on 2012 Wisc. Senate debate Sep 27, 2012

On Health Care: Supports single payer, public option, and Medicare for all

Thompson claimed Baldwin wants a "completely government-controlled" health care system that goes "far beyond ObamaCare" and is "a Medicare system for all." We rated that Mostly True--accurate but needing clarification or more information.

Baldwin hasn't advocated for socialized medicine. But she has pushed "Medicare for all" legislation and she supports single payer and the public option--government elements that go beyond President Barack Obama's health care reform law.

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

On Principles & Values: FactCheck: Only 3 bills out of 105 sponsorships became law

Jeff Fitzgerald, a Thompson opponent in the Republican primary, suggested Baldwin had been nearly invisible during her 14 years in Congress when he said she had sponsored 105 bills and only three became law. We rated his claim Mostly True.

The number of Baldwin bills that became law is only one measure of her overall record--and one that can be misleading when viewed in isolation.

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

The above quotations are from 2012 Wisconsin Senate Debate. Click here for other excerpts from 2012 Wisconsin Senate Debate. Click here for other excerpts by Tammy Baldwin. Click here for a profile of Tammy Baldwin.
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Page last updated: Dec 05, 2018