Brownback to drop out

Following Jim Gilmore, Tommy Thompson, and Newt Gingrich, my least favorite 2008 Presidential candidate, Sam Brownback, is dropping out.

Yahoo! News covers the story...

Republican Sen. Sam Brownback, the Kansas conservative who struggled to raise money and gain recognition in the 2008 presidential campaign, will drop out on Friday, people close to him said Thursday.

Money was a main reason for his decision, said one person close to Brownback who requested anonymity because the candidate had not yet announced his plans. Brownback is expected to announce his withdrawal in Topeka, Kan.

It's widely anticipated Brownback will run for Kansas governor in 2010, when his term — his second — expires. He had promised in his first Senate campaign to serve no more than two terms.

"He also mentioned he is really looking forward to spending more time in Kansas," the person said.

As recently as last week, Brownback indicated he would keep campaigning through Iowa's first-in-the-nation presidential caucuses in January, saying he would exit the race if he finished worse than fourth there.

But his fundraising has sagged. Reports released Monday showed that of the nine Republican candidates who filed reports, Brownback was seventh in fundraising from July through September and had a mere $94,000 cash on hand, less than any of his rivals. Brownback raised nearly $4 million overall and was eligible for $2 million in federal matching funds.

He spent a good chunk of his money on the Iowa straw poll, an early test of strength whose significance diminished after Arizona Sen. John McCain and former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani decided not to compete. He finished third in the August contest behind former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee.

The straw poll gave a boost to Huckabee, said Chuck Hurley, an influential Iowa conservative who is friend and adviser to Brownback.

"Brownback's campaign didn't catch fire," Hurley said. "It's just the field is still so full, and the pool of voters he was most fishing from was almost perfectly split between him and Mike Huckabee."

Hurley said Brownback called him Thursday morning to say he was dropping out.

Nationally, Brownback had the support of 1 percent of Republicans in this month's Associated Press-Ipsos poll, after peaking at 3 percent in June.

Besides money, Brownback was hurt because he supports a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants, an issue that angers conservatives who influence voting in Iowa and other states that are struggling to provide education, medical care and other services to an influx of immigrants in recent years.

People close to Brownback said it was unlikely he would endorse another candidate on Friday.

It's uncertain how much weight a Brownback endorsement would carry. While the anti-abortion senator is a favorite of religious conservatives, he failed to become their consensus candidate and ranks low in national polls and state surveys.

Still, a nod from Brownback could bolster the conservative credentials of a candidate such as McCain or Huckabee, the rivals who appear most likely to receive his support.

Brownback and McCain are close Senate comrades and have refrained from criticizing one another, instead assailing Romney.

While McCain has a voting record similar to Brownback's on cultural issues, McCain prompts skepticism on the right flank of the party because he isn't a high-profile crusader against abortion rights and gay marriage. Brownback's backing could signal to Christian conservatives that they can trust McCain.

Campaigning in Spartanburg, S.C., on Thursday, McCain said of Brownback, "I'll miss him in this debate. He's a voice for family. He's a voice for the pro-life movement and community in America."

Huckabee, a Southern Baptist preacher, is another favorite of religious conservatives. But like Brownback, he has struggled to rally that voting bloc around his candidacy. He, too, could benefit from Brownback's backing.

Huckabee, campaigning in Rindge, N.H., declined to comment on Brownback's withdrawal because he hadn't heard it officially.

It's harder to imagine any other Republican in the field getting a Brownback nod, although former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson is a possibility. The Kansas senator has bitterly criticized Romney, and Giuliani is disliked by many religious conservatives because of his abortion rights and gay rights positions.

LINK: Brownback to withdraw from GOP race

RELATED READING...

LINK: Report: Brownback dropping White House bid

Well, I wasn't worried -- he wouldn't have won my home state, anyways.

-Mr. Joseph

WI Gov. Tommy Thompson Drops Out

I guess I was right. The '08 field is starting to thin out a bit.

The New York Times reports...

After a sixth-place finish in Saturday’s Iowa Straw Poll, Tommy Thompson, the four-term governor of Wisconsin and former secretary of the Department of Health and Human Services, said he was ending his presidential bid.

Mr. Thompson’s campaign issued a statement tonight confirming his decision to drop out of the race:

“I want to thank the people of Iowa who were welcoming and supportive as well as my volunteers and contributors from around the country,” Mr. Thompson said in the statement. “I have no regrets about running. I felt my record as Governor of Wisconsin and Secretary of Health and Human Services gave me the experience I needed to serve as President, but I respect the decision of the voters. I am leaving the campaign trail today, but I will not leave the challenges of improving health care and welfare in America.”

Mr. Thompson focused his campaign on building support in Iowa, visiting all of the state’s 99 counties. But he had been saying for weeks that without a strong showing in the straw poll, he was likely to bow out.

Yesterday, he won about 7 percent of the vote, putting him behind five of his rivals, including former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who won the straw poll handily with 32 percent of the vote, and former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee, the runner-up.

Mr. Thompson indicated in the statement that he would return to work in the private and nonprofit sectors after “a brief time off.”

“I have very much enjoyed my years in public service and I am comforted by the fact that I think I made a difference for people during that time,” he said. “I hope to continue working to serve others over the next few years.”

LINK: Tommy Thompson Bows Out of Race

For what it is worth, Romney won the straw poll and Huckabee (my second favorite GOP candidate) came in 2nd.

So now it is even. Eight Republicans and eight Democrats...

-Mr. Joseph

Please note that I am glad he dropped out. I don't want Tommy Thompson to be the first President from Wisconsin -- that needs to be Senator Russ Feingold.

Brownback Loses Wisconsin Vote

From Yahoo! News...

Note to Sen. Sam Brownback: In Packerland, it's not cool to diss Brett Favre.

The GOP presidential hopeful drew boos and groans Friday at the Wisconsin Republican Party convention when he used a football analogy to talk about the need to focus on families.

"This is fundamental blocking and tackling," he said. "This is your line in football. If you don't have a line, how many passes can Peyton Manning complete? Greatest quarterback, maybe, in NFL history."

Oops, wrong team to mention in Wisconsin, once described by Gov. Tommy Thompson as the place "where eagles soar, Harleys roar and Packers score."

Realizing what he had said, the Kansas Republican slumped at the podium and put his head in his hands.

"That's really bad," he said. "That will go down in history. I apologize."

His apology brought a smattering of applause and laughter. He tried to recover, saying former Packer Bart Starr may be the greatest of all time, but the crowd was still restless.

"Let's take Favre then," Brownback said. "The Packers are great. I'm sorry. How many passes does he complete without a line?"

"All of them!" more than one person yelled from the back.

"I'm not sure how I recover from this," Brownback said. "My point is we've got to rebuild the family. I'll get off this."

LINK: Football reference trips up GOP hopeful

RELATED READING:

C&L: Brownback Blows Sports Analogy, Disses Favre in WI, Gets Booed

To Hell with this guy. Just another reason why he is my least favorite 2008 Candidate...

-Mr. Joseph

Tommy Thompson: Jews have a ‘tradition’ of ‘earning money.’

He sure makes us Wisconsinites proud...

Think Progress...

“I’m in the private sector and for the first time in my life I’m earning money. You know that’s sort of part of the Jewish tradition and I do not find anything wrong with that,” said former Wisconsin governor and presidential candidate Tommy Thompson while speaking to a group of Jewish activists. He later apologized after the audience reacted negatively, saying that he actually meant it as a compliment. Atrios responds HERE.

LINK: Thompson: Jews have a ‘tradition’ of ‘earning money.’

The Politico noted his apology...

Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson said today that fatigue and a persistent cold were to blame for his comment yesterday to a group of Reform Jews that earning money is "part of the Jewish tradition."

"I was tired, I made a mistake and I apologized," Thompson told a group of Politico reporters and editors in an interview.

"Have you ever made a mistake?," a testy Thompson demanded of this reporter.

Thompson also noted that he had received an award from the Anti-Defamation League and traveled to Israel last year to accept a "Friend of Zion" award from former Prime Ministers Benjamin Netanyahu and Shimon Peres.

LINK: T. Thompson Apologizes For Jewish Remark

I can't believe he is running for President...
-Mr. Joseph

Is Tommy Thompson the Anti-Christ?

From Crooks and Liars...

I actually had several other more plausible candidates in mind, personally. Don't get me wrong, I'm not in favor of RFID chips, but it struck me as ironic that the rightwingers keep labeling liberals as 'unhinged' when they have such bright, shiny examples right in their own backyard.

People for the American Way:

Janet Folger, formerly the National Director of the Center for Reclaiming America and current President of Faith 2 Action, announces that she will not be voting for Tommy Thompson, primarily because he reportedly supports the use of implantable Radio Frequency Identification chips.

And that smacks too much of the Book of Revelations for Folger's liking:

He wants us all to be "chipped" with Radio Frequency Identification and sits on the board of the VeriChip Corp., a company currently talking to the Pentagon about inserting the grain-sized microchip into American citizens, beginning with our soldiers.

High-tech stuff like that you can find in the book of … Revelation - written 2,000 years ago. Here's what I remember from Sunday School: In the end times, there's a one-world government and a good-looking charismatic leader who seems like a really great guy, except for the fact that he happens to be the Antichrist. He talks all about peace and requires that everyone take this mark in order to buy and sell. The upside of taking the mark: you get to buy and sell; the downside: you go to hell forever.

Folger, author of The Criminalization of Christianity, has a flair for dramatic rhetoric. As a featured speaker at the 2006 "War on Christians" conference, she stated that Christians have the right to remain silent in the face of persecution and hostility but "if you use your right to remain silent, those are the last words you'll hear before seeing the inside of a prison cell."

But even for an expert in hyperbole, Folger's insinuation that Thompson may be the anti-Christ, or at least on of his henchmen, is pretty remarkable.

LINK: Is Tommy Thompson the Anti-Christ?

This is too funny. He's the ex-governor of my home state, and I can't stand him. I hope he drops out soon.
-Mr. Joseph

Ex-Gov. of WI to Run in '08?

From Yahoo! News...

He's far less known than some of his potential rivals, but former Cabinet secretary and Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson says he'll form a committee allowing him to test the waters for seeking the Republican nomination for president.

Thompson says health care will be one of the top three issues in the next presidential election and that his background heading the Health and Human Services Department makes him a natural fit. The other issues, he says, will be energy independence and the war in Iraq.

...

He resigned as HHS secretary in December 2004 shortly after Bush won a second term.

Born in Elroy, Wis., Thompson prided himself on his small-town roots — his father was a grocer. Thompson introduced himself to voters during his first gubernatorial campaign in 1986 as a proud son of Elroy, "located between Kendall and Union Center, north of Wonewoc and south of Hustler."

LINK: Ex-Bush aide to explore presidential run

LINK: Another GOP hat tossed in the ring

-Mr. Joseph