Ex-Bush aide to explore presidential run

[Ron Burgundy]

AP - Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who served as Health and Human Services Secretary in President Bush's first term, said Wednesday he intends to form a committee to explore a possible run for the White House in 2008.


DES MOINES, Iowa - Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson, who served as Health and Human Services Secretary in President Bush's first term, said Wednesday he intends to form a committee to explore a possible run for the White House in 2008.

"I intend to do so after the first of the year," the Republican said in reference to establishing an exploratory committee.

Thompson made the comments in Iowa, where he met with about 100 members of a group called Iowans for Wellness and Prevention. The state holds the first votes of the presidential nominating process.

Thompson, who will turn 65 on Sunday, spent nearly four decades in politics and government, including 14 years as governor. He resigned as HHS secretary in December 2004 shortly after Bush won a second term. His tenure at HHS was marked by anthrax attacks, a flu vaccine shortage and passage of the Medicare prescription law.

"We touched the third rail of politics and delivered on our promise to modernize Medicare with prescription drug coverage," Thompson said.

During his stop in Iowa, Thompson argued that his background as a Midwest governor and HHS secretary would appeal to voters.

"The three big issues in 2008 are going to be health, energy independence and the war in Iraq," he said.

Thompson faces a daunting task in what's expected to be a crowded field of Republican presidential candidates. Front-runner Sen. John McCain (news, bio, voting record) planned to file the paperwork for an exploratory committee on Thursday and former New York City mayor Rudy Giuliani recently took the first step in his bid.

Other potential candidates include Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, Tennessee Sen. Bill Frist (news, bio, voting record), Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee and New York Gov. George Pataki. California Rep. Duncan Hunter (news, bio, voting record) also has announced a presidential bid.

Thompson said more than 90 percent of spending on health care — roughly 16 percent of the gross national product — is for treating disease, while only about 8 percent is spent on prevention.

"To me that's just backwards," he said. "I want to try and transpose that."

Thompson had been the state's longest-serving governor when Bush named him to lead the department. He made his mark as governor by pushing for an overhaul of Wisconsin welfare laws, well before Congress and President Clinton took up the issue on the national level.

But a month after the Sept. 11 attacks, the nation faced its first case of bioterrorism in the form of anthrax attacks against government and media targets in Washington, Florida and New York.

Thompson generally escaped criticism, but lawmakers complained that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reacted slowly to the crisis.

In 2004, similar criticism was leveled at the Food and Drug Administration for its reaction to the loss of half the U.S. supply of flu vaccine because of contamination at a manufacturing plant in England.

The FDA also has come under fire for its handling of safety concerns about Merck & Co.'s Vioxx painkiller.

Thompson, meanwhile, was a key player in President Bush's AIDS initiative, a commitment of $15 billion over 5 years for treatment and prevention of the scourge overseas.

He traveled frequently to Africa. Thompson also used his AIDS role to trumpet his idea of medical diplomacy, investing in health care and medical facilities around the world.

Born in Elroy, Wis., Thompson prided himself on his small-town roots as he won an unprecedented four terms as Wisconsin's governor. 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."

During his tenure, Thompson pushed the Milwaukee School Choice program, in which religious and private schools received up to $5,000 per pupil from the state to cover tuition for low-income Milwaukee students who otherwise would attend public schools.

Thompson occasionally flirted with the idea of going to Washington. He ran for Congress in 1979 but lost in the Republican primary and considered briefly running for president in 2000 but dropped the idea, saying he didn't have the necessary financial backing or support.