Tommy Thompson and the GOP base: how's the relationship? (WI)

JS ONLINE ^ | 7-4-12 | Craig Gilbert

[afraidfortherepublic]

Asked last month about Tommy Thompson’s bid for US Senate, Gov. Scott Walker defended his predecessor’s conservative credentials, which have been questioned by some.

“I don’t see him having a problem with 'base' voters,” said Walker, who is neutral in the GOP Senate primary.

Is Walker right?

Or will the party's conservative base peel away from Thompson in the Aug. 14 primary?

That question is a huge key to this contest and at the core of a great personal political drama.

Thompson is the best-known candidate. He’s generally perceived as the frontrunner. His Republican rivals are running at him from the right. So the strength of his standing with the GOP base will largely determine whether one of them – Mark Neumann or Eric Hovde or Jeff Fitzgerald – can knock him off.

There is not much evidence in the public polling so far that the Republican faithful in Wisconsin has soured on Thompson, a conservative hero in the 1990s who now draws fire from some critics on the right for his spending record as governor and his pragmatic brand of politics.

Nobody doubts the GOP has shifted rightward since Thompson last won a Wisconsin election (1998).

But in the last two polls by Marquette Law School, Thompson’s ratings with “base” voters were pretty good.

Among “very conservative” Republican voters, Thompson was viewed favorably by 68% and unfavorably by 16% (the rest were neutral or had no opinion).

Among Republican voters who support the Tea Party, he was viewed favorably by 71% and unfavorably by 17%.

In fact, Thompson did better with Republicans who support the Tea Party (71% favorable) than with Republicans who don’t (60% favorable).

~snip~

Comparing his polling numbers with Walker’s is one way to put Thompson’s current political profile in perspective.

[afraidfortherepublic]

[afraidfortherepublic]

Wisconsin ping: Can Thompson hold the GOP base?

FReep Mail me if you want on, or off, this Wisconsin interest ping list.

Personally, I’m voting for Eric Hovde. I’d be for Fitzgerald but he doesn’t seem to have any money and no campaign organization which will put him at a disadvantage against Baldwin, even if he managed to sqeak throgh the Primary.

[Cicero]

He had an excellent record on the right to life, as governor.

[conservativegranny]

Thompson would be my last choice. He is too old for one thing. We have two other conservatives to choose from that are much younger. These seats are held for years sometimes. Look at long Feingold occupied it. Why do this again and risk losing to a democrat?

The time has never been better to get a solid conservative in that seat and hold it. Fitzgerald proved his conservative credentials. Thompson has been on the wrong side of the issues more than once namely on Obamacare when he teamed with Tom Daschle to support it. Now he claims he has changed his mind.

No thank you Tommy. You had your chance now let a younger conservative give it a go. If he was thinking of the future and the good of WI he’d drop out of the race considering his age. Just my opinion for what it’s worth.

[afraidfortherepublic]

Re: Tommy

Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me.

Tommy promised to complete his last term as Gov. and then quit to go to Washington to run HHS. We forgave him for that, but:

Tommy “invited” terrorists to attack our food supply in his farewell speech when he left HHS at the end of Bush’s 1st term “because it would be so easy”. Stupid and dangerous blunder.

Tommy has interfered in every election since he left HHS, thus preventing conservatives from running by fielding the idea that he might be running again — or his brother might be running. Then he drops out before the election, after he’s spent months sucking up all the money and hamstringing the other candidates.

Tommy interfered with Scott Walker’s candidacy in 2006, thus giving us a Dem Gov for 4 years.

Tommy refused to back his own Lt. Gov. (McCallum) when he ran for re-election in 2002. He toyed with the voters because his brother wanted to run, thus giving us a Dem Gov. for 4 years.

Tommy has rebuffed every invitation from the WisGOP to run for Senate over the past 10 years.

Tommy joined Tom Daschle to back Obamacare when it was first passed. Now he says he doesn’t like it. Do I trust him to repeal it? No.

Tommy has been a great proponent of man-made global warming taxes.

Tommy has been a proponent of ethynol in our gas. Now he says he doesn’t approve of it, but he made a lot of money from it during the Doyle (Dem) administration.

Tommy has favored the Cap and Trade Tax in the past. A bad idea.

IMHO Tommy would not be a much better Senator than Herb Kohl has been.

[Aliska]

I wouldn't vote for him.

History with VeriChip could damage Tommy Thompson's Campaign for US Senate

[Cicero]

OK, that’s certainly convincing.

I had vague memories that he was a pretty good governor, but that he was a disappointment in Bush’s cabinet. It sounds as if he has gone from bad to worse over the years.

[House Atreides]

“.....It sounds as if he has gone from bad to worse over the years.”
******************************************************************

Maybe “they” injected him with the same stuff they used on John Roberts. Unfortunately the three more conservative candidates in the race will be splitting the TRUE CONSERVATIVE vote and hand the race to Thompson. Sound familiar?

[TheConservativeParty]

He’s the last choice.
Too bad he even ran.

I’ll vote for Hovde in the primary.

[Aetius]

Is there a likelihood of a Sharon Angle-type of disaster with the other candidates?

I prefer the more conservative candidate generally, but I certainly wish Nevada Republicans had chosen differently last time. Reid should have been beaten.

[Aetius]

Is there a likelihood of a Sharon Angle-type of disaster with the other candidates?

I prefer the more conservative candidate generally, but I certainly wish Nevada Republicans had chosen differently last time. Reid should have been beaten.

[conservativegranny]

Wasn’t there some allegations of fraud in that race?

I do believe that a majority of WI republicans are not aware of Tommy’s history in reference to Healthcare and his support of the medical chip. All they remember is his name and that he was successfull with welfare reform.

The biggest thing he has going for him is name recognition. If the information gets out there and the age issue is stressed by the Hovde & Fitzgerald campaigns as well as talk radio I believe the numbers would start to go against Thompson.

Thompson is part of the republican party establishment. A GOP from the past. He is no way in the same league as a Paul Ryan or Ron Johnson. A politician Thompson’s age probably isn’t going to Washington to make waves and rile feathers.

I think one thing that happens is that too many conservatives are “afraid”. They can be talked down into accepting a less conservative candidate with the fear that a dem will win. This is used time and time again.

I believe in WI we have proven that we will get behind the more conservative candidate. We got both Walker and the majority of recalled senators over the finish line as well as Ron Johnson.

We stopped being afraid of “what ifs” and just went with it. It worked.

[ken5050]

However, it's only because Thompson waffled on running for the Senate in 2010, and bailed at the last minute, that we now very happily have Ron Johnson in the Senate.

So maybe we should give him an "atta boy?"...and THEN vote for either of his opponents..

[ken5050]

It's only because Thompson waffled on running for the Senate in 2010 ( and ultimately declined to run late in the game) that we now happily have Ron Johnson oin the Senate.

So maybe we should all just give Tommy a great big "atta boy!!" ( before voting for either of his two opponents.)

[afraidfortherepublic]

That’s my plan...

[afraidfortherepublic]

I had vague memories that he was a pretty good governor, but that he was a disappointment in Bush’s cabinet.

He got way more credit than he deserved. He's a big spender and he left WI in debt. When conservatives (or newcomers) would complain, they'd always be told, "Oh, he's so much better than what we COULD have had."