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57-476: Tommy George Thompson (born November 19, 1941) is an American politician from Juneau County, Wisconsin . He served as the 19th United States secretary of Health and Human Services from 2001 to 2005 in the cabinet of President George W. Bush . Before that, he was the 42nd governor of Wisconsin (1987–2001) and Republican floor leader in the Wisconsin State Assembly (1981–1987). He

114-568: A gas station and country grocery store . His brother, the late Ed Thompson , was a mayor of Tomah, Wisconsin , and was the Libertarian Party nominee for governor of Wisconsin in 2002 . He has a daughter, Kelli Thompson, who is a lawyer working as Wisconsin's state public defender . Thompson earned his bachelor and Juris Doctor degrees from the University of Wisconsin–Madison in 1963 and 1966, respectively. While in law school, Thompson

171-551: A high-speed service by 2003, which would include a station at Dane County Regional Airport . As part of his plans, Thompson initiated preliminary studies that resulted in the construction of the Milwaukee Airport Rail Station . In 1996, Thompson bragged that he never raised taxes in Wisconsin. Thompson claimed to cut taxes 91 times—including eliminating the estate tax in 1987, cutting income tax rates three times and

228-434: A $ 1.2 billion property tax cut in 1995. When Thompson made the same claim, in 2012, that he "never raised taxes", he earned a rating of "False" from PolitiFact -Wisconsin. PolitiFact found numerous examples of taxes that had increased during Thompson's terms. Politifact said in its rating, "Thompson has a long list of taxes he cut and, on balance, he can claim to have reduced taxes. But he also raised some specific taxes along

285-526: A bioterrorism attack, increase funding for the National Institutes of Health, expand health insurance coverage to lower-income Americans, and focus attention on health problems such as obesity and diabetes." He also was elected chairman of the Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria in 2003. Thompson was one of the key architects of the 2003 passage of Bush's Medicare Modernization Act, which

342-452: A general fertility rate of 72.7 births per 1000 women aged 15–44, the 12th highest rate out of all 72 Wisconsin counties. Of these, only 2 of the births occurred at home. Additionally, there were 16 reported induced abortions performed on women of Juneau County residence in 2017, a figure higher than the records for the preceding four years. Juneau County was long considered a bellwether in presidential elections . From 1964 through 2016 ,

399-652: A second term defeating Democrat Thomas Loftus , the Speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly , 58%–42%. Thompson won election to a third term defeating Democratic state senator Chuck Chvala 67%–31%. He won every county in the state except Menominee County . Thompson won election to a fourth term defeating Democrat Ed Garvey , a Wisconsin Deputy Attorney General , 60%–39%. Thompson is best known nationally for changes in Wisconsin's welfare system, which

456-471: A statement to the press that "would be cited for years afterward as a historic blunder in crisis communication". Thompson offered the media a "far-fetched" suggestion that the individual who died had come into contact with anthrax from drinking water from a creek. Thompson's words were criticized by a range of experts as unwarranted, as potentially undermining public confidence, and as the "kind of statements that lead to mistrust of officials and experts". Thompson

513-484: A subject of attacks on his record as governor later by conservative opponents in the 2012 U.S. Senate primary. Thompson is a rail enthusiast, and was a supporter of mass transit, which earned him distrust on the issue from other Republicans. Prior to being selected as HHS Secretary, Thompson made clear that his first choice in the Bush Administration would be secretary of transportation . While governor, Thompson

570-590: A treaty-guaranteed right to engage in traditional spearfishing off-reservation and that the state of Wisconsin was prohibited from regulating fishing on Ojibwa land. The decision was upheld by the Supreme Court of the United States in 1983. During his 1986 gubernatorial campaign, Thompson suggested abrogating the Ojibwa 's rights. Once in office, Thompson called on two Ojibwa tribes to sell their treaty-guaranteed rights:

627-537: Is land and 37 square miles (96 km ) (4.6%) is water. Fort McCoy outside of Juneau county As of the census of 2020 , the population was 26,718. The population density was 34.8 people per square mile (13.4 people/km ). There were 14,441 housing units at an average density of 18.8 units per square mile (7.3 units/km ). The racial makeup of the county was 90.9% White , 2.1% Black or African American , 1.4% Native American , 0.6% Asian , 0.9% from other races , and 4.1% from two or more races. Ethnically,

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684-567: Is the longest-serving governor in Wisconsin history, holding office from January 1987 until February 2001, and is the only person to be elected to the office four times. During his tenure as governor he was also chair of Amtrak , the nation's passenger rail service. He was chairman of the Republican Governors Association in 1991 and 1992, and the National Governors Association in 1995 and 1996. After his time in

741-643: The Hiawatha rail service (between Chicago and Milwaukee), extending to beyond Milwaukee to also serve Madison, Wisconsin and Minnesota's Twin Cities ( Minneapolis – Saint Paul ). Thompson was promoting the "Midwest Rail Initiative" in his capacity as Amtrak's chairman, which included a proposal for a line connecting these cities. In early 2000, he gave further details, proposing first to establish new service between Milwaukee and Madison with $ 50 million in state funding and $ 100 million in federal funding, hoping to inaugurate

798-467: The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities wrote that "many families have actually lost ground even though they are no longer on welfare". Many of Wisconsin's poor remained well below the federal poverty line. In addition, slightly more of the state's poorest children reportedly lacked health insurance than before Thompson's welfare overhaul. The growth of the state budget during Thompson's 14-year tenure became

855-504: The Lac du Flambeau Band of Lake Superior Chippewa , for $ 42 million, and the Mole Lake Band of Lake Superior Chippewa , for $ 10 million. Thompson's administration tried an unsuccessful legal challenge to the "Voigt Decision". The State of Wisconsin argued that Native Americans' lives were in danger from protesters if they continued spearfishing. In 1989, federal judge Barbara Crabb ruled against

912-591: The President's reelection at the administration's request. Some noted, in particular, his words: "I, for the life of me, cannot understand why the terrorists have not, you know, attacked our food supply because it is so easy to do. And we are importing a lot of food from the Middle East, and it would be easy to tamper with that." After leaving the public sector at the end of the Bush Administration , Thompson joined

969-755: The 1983 Voight Decision. During his time as governor, Thompson served as chairman of the National Governors Association and the Education Commission of the States , in addition to the Council of State Governments , the Republican Governors Association , the Council of Great Lakes Governors , and the Midwestern Governors Association . Thompson's name had been in the press as a possible vice presidential pick during several election seasons. By 1992, Thompson himself had openly discussed his desire to be

1026-481: The 1996 vetting process, Dole also reportedly remarked on Thompson's lack of finesse in their interactions. After Dole disclosed that Thompson was no longer under consideration in August, Thompson stated that he was relieved because he had been "scared to death" of the process and the spotlight of the position. In 2000 , Thompson was mentioned as a possible vice presidential running mate for George W. Bush . Thompson left

1083-503: The 42nd Governor of Wisconsin , having been elected to an unprecedented four terms. As of April 2013, Thompson has the tenth longest gubernatorial tenure in post-Constitutional U.S. history at 5,141 days. Thompson decided to run for Governor of Wisconsin in 1986 against incumbent Democrat Anthony Earl . He ran and won the Republican primary with 52% of the vote in a five candidate field. He defeated Earl 53%–46%. Thompson won election to

1140-555: The Bush Administration, Thompson became a partner in the law-firm Akin Gump and Independent Chairman of Deloitte 's Center for Health Solutions. He has served on the boards of 22 other organizations. Thompson most recently served as interim president of the University of Wisconsin System from 2020 to 2022. Thompson was a candidate for President of the United States, running in the 2008 Republican Party presidential primaries , but withdrew from

1197-632: The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services to encourage greater responsiveness and efficiency, and clear the backlog of waivers and state plan amendments. He approved 1,400 state plans and waiver requests, thereby providing health insurance to 1.8 million lower-income Americans. In the aftermath of 9/11, he also worked on strengthening the nation's preparedness for a bio-terrorism attack, by stockpiling smallpox vaccines and investing heavily in state and local public health infrastructure. Thompson's major initiatives were "efforts to strengthen U.S. preparedness for

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1254-1001: The OSHA in 1970, the Clear Lakes Bill that established environmental protection for the Great Lakes, the Older Americans Act of 1965, the Elementary and Secondary School Act, the Manpower Act, and the Steiger Amendment of 1978 that reduced the capital gains tax . While he was a U.S. representative, he in 1969 employed the future Vice President Dick Cheney as an intern. Steiger died from a heart attack in Washington, D.C., on December 4, 1978, aged 40. The American Conference of Governmental Industrial Hygienists (ACGIH) annually hands out

1311-403: The Republican vice presidential nominee for 1996. Republican presidential nominee Bob Dole considered Thompson as a possible vice presidential nominee in 1996 and Thompson openly lobbied for the position. However, Thompson was forced to fight off perceptions of being someone to "bluster through a speech, turn bombastic during public statements", and have difficulty thinking on his feet. During

1368-585: The Thompson Administration's legal efforts. The judge rebuked the state for attempting to avoid violence by punishing the Ojibwa, since it was violence by non-Native American protesters that was the threatened danger. Crabb issued an injunction against violent anti-spearfishing protests in 1991, and made it permanent in 1992. On May 20, 1991, the Thompson administration declared it would no longer attempt to appeal

1425-628: The William Steiger Memorial Award, which honors individuals from the social/political sphere whose efforts have contributed to advancements in occupational safety and health. His son, William R. Steiger , worked for Governor Tommy Thompson of Wisconsin , and most recently as the Director of the Office of Global Health Affairs and Special Assistant to the Secretary for International Affairs, in

1482-536: The Wisconsin State Assembly. In the Republican primary, he defeated incumbent Assemblyman Louis Romell by 635 votes, after Romell had underestimated the challenge Thompson represented. In 1973, Thompson became the Assembly's assistant minority leader and its minority leader in 1981. Thompson aggressively used parliamentary procedure to block bills favored by the Democratic majority and stop legislative progress, earning him

1539-444: The advocacy group Union of Concerned Scientists as part of a report detailing their allegations of a " politicization of science " under President George W. Bush's administration. Thompson resigned on December 3, 2004, in a press conference at which he issued warnings over the dangers of avian flu and the poisoning of U.S. food supplies by terrorists. Thompson stated that he had attempted to resign in 2003, but remained until after

1596-418: The anthrax scare of 2001." Early in his term, Thompson faced an emergency situation with the 2001 anthrax attacks. Thompson was given poor marks for seeming "utterly overtaken by events" and issuing "early statements that the government was prepared to deal with any biological emergency [that] never squared with the facts". At a White House briefing following the first anthrax death of the scare, Thompson made

1653-586: The creation of the country's first parental school-choice program, which provided Milwaukee families with a voucher to send children to the private or public school of their choice. He created the BadgerCare program, designed to provide health coverage to those families whose employers don't provide health insurance but make too much money to qualify for Medicaid . Through the federal waiver program, Thompson helped replicate this program in several states when he became Secretary of Health and Human Services. Thompson

1710-484: The data was improperly hidden from Congress, but did not conclude whether laws had been broken. In 2011 the trustees of Medicare found that the prescription drug benefit had come in 40% below estimates, the Congressional Budget Office (using different budgeting numbers) determined that the program had come in 28% below projections. In her Senate campaign, Rep. Tammy Baldwin (D-WI) said in 2012 that Thompson

1767-517: The debate over the adoption of Medicare Part D, Thompson was involved in a dispute over whether the Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services had to share cost estimates to Congress for legislation that would create a prescription drug benefit. Critics accused Thompson and HHS of downplaying the true cost of the law by $ 150 billion. CMS Administrator Tom Scully threatened to fire a CMS actuary if he revealed to Congress his estimate. Investigators determined that

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1824-631: The election of Tom Petri . In the House, Steiger was a strong supporter of tax cuts as a way to stimulate the economy. He sponsored legislation reducing the capital gains tax , establishing the Occupational Safety and Health Administration , and securing environmental protection for the Great Lakes . The bills that he authored on those topics included the Williams-Steiger Bill that established

1881-513: The governorship when he was appointed by President George W. Bush as HHS Secretary. He was confirmed by the Senate on January 24, 2001. Thompson announced his resignation from HHS on December 3, 2004, and served until January 26, 2005, when the Senate confirmed his successor, Michael O. Leavitt . While Secretary, he launched initiatives to increase funding for the National Institutes of Health, reorganize

1938-457: The law firm Akin Gump , and the consulting firm Deloitte and joined the boards of directors of other companies. Juneau County, Wisconsin Juneau County is a county located in the U.S. state of Wisconsin . As of the 2020 census , the population was 26,718. Its county seat is Mauston . Before white settlement, before loggers and explorers, the area that is now Juneau County

1995-587: The nickname "Dr. No" by the frustrated majority. As a state legislator, Thompson was involved in the early years of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), a conservative legislative organization. Speaking at a 2002 ALEC meeting, Thompson stated: "I always loved going to [ALEC] meetings because I always found new ideas. Then I'd take them back to Wisconsin, disguise them a little bit, and declare, 'That's mine.'" ALEC awarded Thompson its "Thomas Jefferson Award" in 1991. While Thompson

2052-582: The population was 2.7% Hispanic or Latino of any race. As of the census of 2000, there were 24,316 people, 9,696 households, and 6,699 families residing in the county. The population density was 32 people per square mile (12 people/km ). There were 12,370 housing units at an average density of 16 units per square mile (6.2 units/km ). The racial makeup of the county was 96.61% White , 0.33% Black or African American , 1.30% Native American , 0.44% Asian , 0.02% Pacific Islander , 0.57% from other races , and 0.74% from two or more races. 1.43% of

2109-478: The population were Hispanic or Latino of any race. 41.2% were of German , 9.9% Irish , 8.8% Norwegian , 6.5% Polish and 5.8% English ancestry. There were 9,696 households, out of which 30.4% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 55.5% were married couples living together, 8.8% had a female householder with no husband present, and 30.9% were non-families. 26.0% of all households were made up of individuals, and 12.30% had someone living alone who

2166-446: The race before voting began. He was the Republican nominee for United States Senate in Wisconsin in the 2012 election , vying to replace retiring senator Herb Kohl , but was defeated by Democrat Tammy Baldwin in what was his only statewide election loss. Thompson was born in Elroy, Wisconsin . His mother, Julie (née Dutton), was a teacher , and his father, Allan Thompson, owned and ran

2223-498: The state attorney general to join other state[s] in a lawsuit against cigarette manufacturers. Thompson is Catholic and opposes abortion. His support for legislation in Wisconsin restricting abortions led Planned Parenthood , NARAL , and other pro-choice groups to oppose his nomination to head HHS. In 1983, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit issued its "Voigt Decision", which found that Wisconsin's Ojibwa tribe had

2280-530: The unit's director, Gerald Keusch of the Fogarty International Center , résumés for other scientists that Keusch described as "lightweights" with "no scientific credibility." Keusch relayed to one of those rejected, Nobel laureate Torsten Wiesel , that he was pushed aside for having "signed too many full-page letters in The New York Times critical of President Bush." This incident was cited by

2337-444: The way." Politifact rated Mostly True Thompson's claim that Wisconsin's overall tax burden went down while he served as governor from 1987 to 2001. Two of the tax increases that Thompson did fight, using the Wisconsin governor's partial-veto power, were taxes on the state's wealthiest residents. In a budget bill in 1987, Thompson vetoed two tax increases on capital gains and the alternative minimum tax , that would have largely affected

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2394-410: The wealthy, at the same time that he pushed forward a 6% cut in welfare benefits. As governor, Thompson took major steps to transfer decision-making power from elected constitutional officers and independent agencies to his political appointees. Among the changes: Thompson also had two other acts overturned by the courts as unconstitutional. His plan to include church schools in his school voucher plan

2451-471: The winning candidate has carried the county in every presidential election. However, this trend ended in 2020 when the county was again won by Donald Trump by an even larger margin than he had won it in 2016, despite his nationwide defeat to Joe Biden . William A. Steiger Steiger was born in Oshkosh, Wisconsin . He attended the youth government and leadership program Badger Boys State in 1955 where he

2508-434: Was Janet Dempsey Steiger ; they were married on August 10, 1963. In 1966, Steiger was elected to the 90th Congress as the representative of Wisconsin's 6th congressional district . He was re-elected to the next six Congresses but died in office before the 96th Congress . Overall, he served from January 3, 1967, to December 4, 1978. His death left a vacancy in the House that was filled by a special election that resulted in

2565-468: Was 65 years of age or older. The average household size was 2.47 and the average family size was 2.96. In the county, the population was spread out, with 25.4% under the age of 18, 6.9% from 18 to 24, 26.6% from 25 to 44, 24.3% from 45 to 64, and 16.8% who were 65 years of age or older. The median age was 39 years. For every 100 females there were 100.1 males. For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 97.4 males. In 2017, there were 282 births, giving

2622-505: Was Assistant Minority Leader in the Assembly, incumbent Republican U.S. Congressman William Steiger of Wisconsin's 6th congressional district died at the age of 40 from a heart attack . Thompson was one of seven Republican candidates who ran to replace Steiger in the special election in 1979. State Senator Tom Petri won the primary and general elections and represented the 6th district until his retirement in January 2015. Thompson served as

2679-562: Was also faulted for positioning himself as the voice of the Administration to the public on this issue, having had no formal training in medicine or public health. In 2001, early in his term as Secretary of Health and Human Services, Thompson's office rejected 19 of 26 people, including a Nobel laureate , recommended for seats on the advisory board for the NIH developing nations unit by the unit's director. In return, Thompson's office sent back to

2736-458: Was appointed to the Amtrak Board of Directors by President Bill Clinton , served as chairman, and had an Amtrak locomotive named for him from 2001 through 2006, when his name was removed from the side of the locomotive as part of a routine overhaul. Beginning in the 1990s, Thompson proposed modernizing passenger rail in the state. In 1999, Thompson proposed a modernization and extension of

2793-514: Was elected Governor and then represented his state at Boys Nation . In 1960, he graduated from the University of Wisconsin–Madison . After college, Steiger entered the business world, becoming a part owner of the Oshkosh Motor Lodge. Later, he became the president of Steiger-Ratke Development. In 1960, the young Steiger made his first run for elected office and became a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1961 to 1965. His wife

2850-803: Was elected chairman of the Madison Young Republicans . Thompson held a student deferment from military service during the Vietnam War until he completed law school in June 1966. The following year, 1966, Thompson enlisted in the National Guard . After completing six years in the National Guard, Thompson served in the Army Reserves for another four years. His final rank was captain . Immediately after completing law school in 1966, Thompson ran for

2907-564: Was established in Maugh's Town, which is known today as Mauston. The county was named after Solomon Juneau , a founder of Milwaukee . In the 1970s, county officials had indicated their interest, and submitted a request to Wisconsin Power and Light Company, to build a nuclear power plant on Petenwell Lake . According to the U.S. Census Bureau , the county has a total area of 804 square miles (2,080 km ), of which 767 square miles (1,990 km )

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2964-484: Was found unconstitutional. Thompson also insisted on keeping Good Friday as a half-holiday for state workers, "despite a clear ruling" from the Seventh Circuit , earning a rebuke from the court. As governor, Thompson was friendly to tobacco interests. His campaign accepted tens of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions and trips from Philip Morris . He also vetoed a tobacco excise tax and "delayed authorizing

3021-519: Was radically downsized, before similar ideas were adopted nationally. Under his leadership, Wisconsin reduced its welfare rolls by almost 90%, cutting welfare spending but increasing investments in child care and health care, especially for low-income working families. Thompson was called a "pioneer" for two key initiatives of his governorship, the Wisconsin Works welfare reform (sometimes called W-2) and school vouchers . In 1990 Thompson pushed for

3078-485: Was responsible for forbidding Medicare to negotiate drug prices, a statement that Politifact rated as "True." Thompson said that he had nothing to do with that provision, a statement Politifact rated as "False." The New York Times reported, "In December (2004), just before leaving office, Mr. Leavitt’s predecessor, Tommy G. Thompson, said he wished Congress had given him the authority to negotiate prices for Medicare beneficiaries, as he negotiated discounts on antibiotics during

3135-413: Was slated to provide public funding for prescription drugs for Medicare recipients starting in 2006. On the prescription drug-benefit issue, the major piece of health care legislation of President Bush's first term, Thompson frequently served as the president's point man. National analysts cite the passage of Medicare reform as the most important achievement of Thompson's tenure as HHS secretary. As part of

3192-620: Was the home of Native Americans who left behind artifacts like the thunderbirds etched on the wall at Twin Bluffs and the Gee's Slough mounds outside New Lisbon. Juneau County was established in 1857 when the Wisconsin Legislature passed legislation separating lands west of the Wisconsin River from what was then Adams County . After a contest with neighboring New Lisbon , the county seat

3249-458: Was well known for his extensive use of the veto , particularly his sweeping line-item veto powers. At the time, Wisconsin governors had the power to strike out words, numbers, and even entire sentences from appropriations bills. In his first two terms alone, he used the line-item veto 1,500 times to cancel a total of $ 150 million in spending; none of these vetoes were overridden. Thompson's welfare reform policies were criticized. Wendell Primus of

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