000320

                    Thompson
                     tapped for
                    prestigious
                   role at GOP
                    convention 

                                       Wisconsin Sen. Russ Feingold.


                              By Melanie Fonder


                  News-Chronicle
                  WASHINGTON - Even though no one will admit it,
                  sources have all but confirmed Wisconsin Gov.
                  Tommy Thompson will play a major role leading to
                  this summer's Republican National Convention in
                  Philadelphia. 

                  Gov. Thompson is likely to be tapped to lead the
                  committee that writes the party platform in the weeks
                  before the convention. 

                  The committee, comprised of two delegates from
                  each state, will draft party stances on issues ranging
                  from standard issues like abortion and perhaps to
                  former presidential candidate John McCain's stalwart
                  campaign finance reform agenda. 

                  Of course, Thompson's appointment isn't official yet.
                  A Republican National Committee spokesman
                  deferred to the convention spokesman, who deferred
                  to Thompson's spokesman, who declined to
                  comment. 

                  GORE-FEINGOLD?
                  Speaking of campaign finance reform, forget about
                  the likelihood of Thompson as a vice presidential
                  candidate - another Wisconsinite has been making
                  the short list in the last week. 

                  The talk is probably just talk, but some are
                  suggesting that U.S. Sen. Russ Feingold, D-Wis.,
                  could pull Vice President Al Gore out of the latest
                  brewing controversy and secure an integral voting
                  bloc. 

                  With the 1996 campaign fund-raising scandal making
                  headlines again and the recent conviction of
                  fund-raiser friend Maria Hsia, Gore is facing tough
                  accusations about his role in certain fund-raisers. At
                  the same time, both he and likely GOP nominee Gov.
                  George W. Bush are desperately seeking to claim the
                  independent voters McCain brought to the polls and
                  seal a victory in November. 

                  Figuring largely into their equation is how best to
                  proclaim themselves campaign finance reformers, an
                  issue Gore jumped on shortly after Super Tuesday
                  by asking Bush to give up soft money contributions.
                  For now, Feingold staffers are chuckling at the idea. 

                  PRICES AT THE PUMP
                  For the second time this year, truckers from around
                  the country rolled into the U.S. Capitol last week to
                  protest rising gas prices. The issue has lawmakers
                  grappling with both how to ease their constituents'
                  wallet concerns and not let highway funding fall by
                  the wayside. 

                  Rep. Mark Green, R-Green Bay, said short-term
                  and long-term solutions for the sky-high gas prices
                  need to be addressed at the same time. 

                  "I'm in favor of almost anything that would reduce the
                  price of gas that people pay at the pump, but I also
                  think we want to be careful of hurting state and local
                  units of government," Green said. 

                  In Northeast Wisconsin, Green said a multitude of
                  highway construction improvements would be in peril
                  if money to ease gas prices came from the
                  transportation budget. Instead, he said, Congress
                  also needs to look closely at foreign policy to avoid
                  another oil crisis in the future. 

                  "Some of the nations involved in OPEC come to us
                  every year looking for assistance," Green said. "It's
                  crazy for us to be sending the generous aid that we
                  do when these countries manipulate the oil; I think
                  our foreign policy has been adrift for a number of
                  years." 

                  KEEPING TRACK
                  - Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Janesville, recently spoke with
                  House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert, R-Ill., and asked
                  him to consider redoing the House chaplain selection
                  process. Ryan, who is Catholic, said he believes
                  there was no "bigotry in the process" but is disgusted
                  at the House Democrats who have "seized upon this
                  for political gain." 

                  The controversy stems from the House leadership
                  decision to choose a Presbyterian minister over a
                  Catholic priest, following the recommendation of
                  three names from an 18-member bipartisan
                  committee. 

                  - Green, who serves on the powerful Budget
                  Committee, was named the vice chairman of a new
                  budget subcommittee last week. The Education and
                  Training Oversight Task Force, which will be chaired
                  by Rep. Pete Hoekstra, R-Mich., will track where
                  education dollars are spent. 

                  This column by Fonder, a staff writer for The
                  Hill, a Washington-based weekly that covers
                  Congress appears every Monday in The Green
                  Bay News-Chronicle. You can e-mail her with
                  comments at melfonder@yahoo.com.