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Tommy Thompson on Budget & Economy
Former Secretary of H.H.S.; former Republican Governor (WI)
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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
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
Addressing runaway spending is defining issue of our day
Q: How would you help Americans build a financial nest egg for their retirement?A: Governor Thompson fully and wholeheartedly endorses Paul Ryan's Path to Prosperity and will take all necessary steps to ensure the U.S. Senate takes up the plan.
Addressing runaway spending and the debt it causes is the defining issue of our day. The clearest, most immediate path to achieving lasting reform is to elect a senator who is most prepared to move the core tenets of Paul Ryan's plan through the Senate.
Source: 2012 Senate campaign website in AARP Senate Voter Guide
, Aug 24, 2012
Full audit of the Federal Reserve
Question 6. Would you support a full audit of the Federal Reserve?
Mark Neumann: Yes
Tommy Thompson: Yes
Source: 2012 Wisconsin Tea Party Senate Debate Questionnaire
, Aug 13, 2012
Build the roads and the jobs follow
When we came in, Wisconsin was largely a network of inefficient and dangerous two-lane highways. So we built strategic corridors of four-lane roads that are delivering remarkable economic benefits for communities.
From 1990 to 1996, more than 87% of the 1,900 manufacturing developments in Wisconsin occurred within five miles of a Corridors 2020 highway. And these plants created 90% of the new manufacturing jobs in our state.
We built the roads and the jobs followed. The correlation couldn’t be clearer, nor could the payoff on the investment.We also increased spending on mass transportation by 140%, helping our workers get to and from their jobs.
And we are leading the nation into an exciting new era of high-speed passenger rail with the help of Amtrak. We’ve taken a balanced approach to moving our products and people in Wisconsin.
Source: 2001 State of the State Address
, Jan 31, 2001
Vetoed 255 spending bills totalling $43M
The 1999-2001 Budget made historic investments in Wisconsin families, provided over $1 billion dollars in tax relief and made unprecedented commitments in education and health care.
Gov. Thompson strengthened the budget by making 255 vetoes to cut a record $43 million in unnecessary spending. The governor also used his veto pen to eliminate $43 million in tax hikes on business, including $31 million in recycling taxes on companies.
Source: Wisconsin Governor’s web site, “Budget”
, Dec 25, 2000
Let state meat inspection suffice for interstate shipments.
Thompson signed the Midwestern Governors' Conference resolution:
- WHEREAS, The federal Meat and Poultry Inspection Act prohibits the interstate shipment of state inspected meat and poultry products; and
- WHEREAS, Twenty-five states, including eight in the Midwest, have developed individual state inspection programs for plants which do not currently participate in the interstate shipment of meat and poultry products; and
- WHEREAS, Despite meeting federal requirements enforced through a state program, the lack of federal program approval prohibits these smaller state inspected plants from shipping beef, pork, poultry, sheep, lamb, or goat products in commerce across state lines; and
- WHEREAS, This restriction unfairly and severely limits the smaller plants’ marketing options, particularly in the burgeoning Internet market; and
- WHEREAS, The Midwestern Governors strongly support meat and poultry inspection plans that protect public health; now therefore be it
- RESOLVED, That the Midwestern Governors urge Congress to pass legislation that removes this unfair marketing barrier but continues to insure safe meat and poultry products.
Source: Resolution of Midwestern Governors' Conf. on Meat Inspection 00-MGC3 on Jul 25, 2000
Supports a constitutional BBA.
Thompson supports the CC Voters Guide question on a constitutional BBA
Christian Coalition publishes a number of special voter educational materials including the Christian Coalition Voter Guides, which provide voters with critical information about where candidates stand on important faith and family issues.
The Christian Coalition Voters Guide summarizes candidate stances on the following topic: "Passage of a Balanced Budget Amendment to the U.S. Constitution"
Source: Christian Coalition Voter Guide 12-CC-q11c on Oct 31, 2012
Foster dairy production that is market driven.
Thompson signed the Midwestern Governors' Conference resolution:
- WHEREAS, the Federal Milk Marketing Order System was created in 1937 to provide economic incentives to dairy farmers in order to provide sufficient fresh fluid milk for all Americans; and
- WHEREAS, the Federal Milk Marketing Order System has served its original purpose and the creation of the Interstate Highway System and refrigeration trucks have allowed fresh fluid milk to be easily transported throughout the country; and
- WHEREAS, studies show that dairy producers in the Midwest have comparative advantages that allow them to produce products more economically than dairy producers in other regions, yet under current conditions, our family dairy farmers and our states’ dairy infrastructure are at risk; and
- WHEREAS, the dairy industries in our states provide a vital underpinning of our states’ economies; and
- WHEREAS, the United States Department of Agriculture should foster dairy production that is market driven; and
- WHEREAS, the 1996 Farm Bill charged the Secretary of the U.S. Department of Agriculture to substantially reform and simplify the Federal Milk Marketing Order System; and
- WHEREAS, regional pricing solutions, such as compacts, could impede efforts to promote a market-oriented system and erect barriers to the export of dairy products from our states; now therefore be it
- RESOLVED, that the United States Department of Agriculture move forward to implement a new, streamlined system that more closely reflects the true national dairy market and that does not provide an unjustified pricing advantage or disadvantage to any region of the country.
Source: Resolution of Midwestern Governors' Conf. on Dairy Reform 98-MGC1 on Feb 24, 1998
Page last updated: Nov 20, 2012
