Former Wisconsin Gov. Tommy Thompson is continuing his attacks against his Democratic rival Rep. Tammy Baldwin for votes his campaign says value “partisan ideology” over national security interests and the well-being of American troops.
A new ad from the Thompson campaign attacks Baldwin for a vote against a defense appropriations bill that would have, among other things, provided body armor for U.S. soldiers. (RELATED: Giuliani says Baldwin “so far to the left … that she can’t think straight”)
“Tammy Baldwin’s shameful campaign, falsely attacking Tommy Thompson on 9/11,” says a narrator. “Not only did Baldwin vote against honoring the victims of 9/11, she fought to block funding that provides body armor for our troops, just to make a political point. Baldwin even voted against tough sanctions on a nuclear Iran while pocketing 60 grand from a radical pro-Iran group.”
“Tammy Baldwin is too extreme for Wisconsin,” concludes the narrator.
Watch:
[youtube width=360 height=202]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UUNZuJ-dynY[/youtube]Baldwin never directly voted against providing body armor for troops. But she did vote against several defense appropriation bills that would have funded technology and pay raises for the military.
Baldwin also co-sponsored the Religious Freedom Peace Tax Fund Act of 2009, along with 21 other Democrats, which would have allowed conscientious objectors to specify that their taxes must be used for nonmilitary spending. The measure was not enacted.
Thompson attacked Baldwin last week in another ad for voting against a resolution to honor the victims of September 11, 2001 on the fifth anniversary of the terror attacks. Baldwin defended her vote, saying she supported the sentiment of the resolution, but voted against it because its language contained references to controversial topics, like the Patriot Act, which she did not support. She noted that she voted for similar resolutions nine other times.
She shot back with an ad accusing Thompson of profiting from the attacks by using his contacts to win a contract for the healthcare company he ran, to treat the victims of 9/11.
Politifact ranked both ads “mostly false.”
Thompson said Baldwin’s adherence to ideology made her judgment on important issues questionable.
“When it comes to our national security interests, I question Congresswoman Tammy Baldwin’s judgment,” he said in a statement. “During her 14 years in Congress, Baldwin has repeatedly proven that she puts her partisan ideology above the national security interests of our country. When faced with decisions to honor the victims of 9/11 and to provide American troops with lifesaving supplies like body armor, Baldwin chose to make a political point instead.”
“Not only has she let her partisan ideology cloud her decision making process, but she has profited off of her weak national security stance. While she was voting against tough sanctions on a nuclear Iran, she was simultaneously lining her campaign coffers with $60,000 from a radical pro-Iran group. Through her actions, Baldwin has put her partisan ideology above our national security interests, proving that she is too extreme for Wisconsin and too dangerous for America.”