Tommy Thompson meets with Donald Trump at Mar-a-Lago as he considers a run for governor
MADISON – Tommy Thompson met Thursday with former President Donald Trump as he ponders another run for governor.
The get-together came three weeks after former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch had her own meeting with Trump as she pursues a bid for governor.
Thompson in February said he planned to decide whether to run by the end of April — about three months before the Aug. 9 Republican primary.
People familiar with Thompson's plans said he was joined at the Mar-a-Lago meeting Thursday by Reince Priebus, the Kenosha native who served as Trump's first chief of staff, and Diane Hendricks, the longtime Republican donor and billionaire chairwoman of Beloit-based ABC Supply Co.
Trump has not signaled whether he will endorse in the governor's race but his support has been coveted by Republican candidates and potential candidates.
In the race along with Kleefisch are management consultant Kevin Nicholson and state Rep. Timothy Ramthun of Campbellsport. Trump has praised Ramthun for his push to try to rescind Wisconsin's 10 electoral votes for President Joe Biden — a feat that legal scholars say is impossible.
Madison businessman Eric Hovde has also said he is considering a run.
The primary winner will face Democratic Gov. Tony Evers in the Nov. 8 general election.
Less than an hour after Thompson’s visit became public, Evers' campaign issued a fundraising plea notifying donors that "Tony's opponents are trying to fly to Mar-A-lago and win the coveted Trump endorsement."
Meeting comes after Trump urged Duffy to run
Trump in October urged former U.S. Rep. Sean Duffy to run for governor, but Duffy declined to get in the race.
Kleefisch met with Trump at Mar-a-Lago, his Palm Beach, Florida, resort property, in March as she touts her run. The conservative website Wisconsin Right Now first reported on that meeting.
Thompson was elected governor four times and left office in 2001 to serve as health secretary under George W. Bush — a president whom Trump has repeatedly maligned.
Most recently, Thompson served as president of the University of Wisconsin System.
During a stop in Waukesha in September 2016, Trump touted advice Thompson had given him as he made his first bid for the presidency. He said Thompson told him not to make an earlier visit to Wisconsin because he wouldn't win the state but later urged him to come because polls had tightened.
"Don, time to come back," Trump recalled Thompson telling him.
Trump went on to narrowly win Wisconsin in 2016. He lost the state in 2020 by a similar margin.
Contact Patrick Marley at patrick.marley@jrn.com. Follow him on Twitter at @patrickdmarley.
