Thompson’s March Toward Exploratory Committee: Day 15
Thompson Plays “Board” Games, Refuses to Release Client List
MADISON – As former Bush Administration Secretary Tommy Thompson continues to publicly weigh a run for U.S. Senate, there is one thing he won’t reveal – his client list with D.C. lobbying firm Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld.
That fuzzy picture got a little clearer on Friday with a bizarre revelation about Thompson’s “board” games.
Thompson has spent the last five years as a Washington insider, cashing in on his work for corporate interests – including health insurance and pharmaceutical companies, and the finance industry.
Last week, the Democratic Party of Wisconsin released a new Web video titled “Working for Them,” that focuses on Thompson’s previous refusal to disclose to the media who he works for during a February interview in Madison. In a November 23, 2009, interview with the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Thompson also refused to disclose his clients, but admitted that he works with about 25 health care companies as part of his work for the D.C. lobbying firm.
“Who are the corporate interests that have been lining Secretary Thompson’s pockets with millions of dollars over the past five years?” Mike Tate, Chairman of the Democratic Party of Wisconsin, said Monday. “The people of Wisconsin deserve someone who’s standing up for them, not the corporate interests in Washington.”
On Friday, we learned of one Thompson corporation that wasn’t previously known – CNS Response, Inc.
The Friday announcement came in the form of a press release from Thompson’s own company. The release said that Secretary Thompson was resigning from the CNS Board of Directors effective immediately. However, in the same release that announced Thompson’s resignation, CNS announced that he will now become Chairman of its Advisory Board.
“While Thompson plays “board” games, Wisconsinites are left to wonder, how can he fight for us, when he’s working for them?” Tate said.
