The governor's race is just about to heat up. Last Wednesday, I had the opportunity to talk with Wisconsin's most interesting candidate, Ed Thompson. Ed is the brother of Tommy Thompson, the former Republican governor of Wisconsin. However, this Thompson is more like a Russ Feingold reform populist, running on a Libertarian ticket.
As the mayor of Tomah, Wis., Thompson knows first-hand how Gov. Scott McCallum's budget threatens communities in Wisconsin. He is fed up and now he's taking on the Wisconsin bureaucrats who have cut the budget at the bottom instead of at the top, where major big-money contributions are enriching professional politicians.
Thompson is unique among his Republican and Democratic contenders in that he is not taking money from lobbyists or Political Action Committees.
\In my opinion, if I took any PAC money, I'd be right in the same boat as the rest of them. Once they give you the money, they feel that they own you,"" said Thompson. ""We're going to do it without PAC money and we're going to win. It's time for a change.""
Running as an openly pro-union candidate, Thompson champions his working-class history.
""I'm a union man. I worked in the Janesville GM plant for three years. I was on the railroad for four years,"" he said. ""In every job I've been a member of the union. I'm for the worker, and I always have been. I just know how desperately they need to have a working wage and the benefits. If you are doing a full-time job, you should get full-time pay and everything that goes with it.""
Thompson told me he has been poor most of his life, which has given him a different perspective towards poverty. He opens the doors of his small supper club to the poor for a free Thanksgiving dinner every year.
""I'm extremely concerned about the poor,"" he said. There are more homeless people than ever before. In Tomah, I have many friends that are poor. Every year I have a free Thanksgiving, and I see these people once a year who can't afford to do anything. People can't get good-paying jobs. W-2's welfare reform has been sold as a lot of hype.""
When asked how he would prioritize students as governor, Thompson said it was terrible that the UW System was receiving less money in every budget. He supports freezing tuition so that it only increases with inflation and helping students afford health care.
""I can't even afford health care, nor can I afford it for my employees and I know that they need it. The price of healthcare in this state is outrageous and I'm just hoping that I stay healthy. But I see that the bureaucrats have tremendous insurance plans for themselves, and it's all done on taxpayer dollars.""
Thompson has refreshing ideas regarding prison reform.
""I absolutely believe in my heart that non-violent offenders do not belong locked up with violent offenders. We started a program in Tomah, where the nonviolent offenders are put on bracelets and they paint the park benches, pick up the streets and do other community service."" he said. ""It's just been a tremendous success and I would like to see that expanded. Prison reform is so badly needed in Wisconsin.""
In our conversation about prison reform, Thompson expressed concern about Wisconsin's staggering rate of incarcerating people of color. He also shared his views on immigrants' rights.
""Companies exploit immigrants for their cheap labor,"" he said. ""In a city about 50 miles from Tomah, there was a meat processing plant employing a large number of Latino employees. When the state shut the plant down for violations, these people didn't get a month's worth of pay. That is so incredibly wrong.""
Decriminalizing drug use, stopping the state's abuse of Limited Term Employees, supporting Wisconsin's Indian communities and protecting the environment are among Thompson's other priorities. He's so different from Tommy; ""I love my brother, I mean how could I not? But politically we are on different sides of the fence.""
Ed will be speaking at UW-Madison March 1 to Political Science 205 in Ingraham Hall at 9:55 a.m. Students for Ed Thompson meet Monday nights at 7 p.m. every other week. The next meeting will be Feb. 25 at the Memorial Union TITU.
