Robin Vos

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Robin Vos
Robin Vos speaks at Racine Tea Party event (8378614585).jpg
79th Speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 7, 2013
Preceded byJeff Fitzgerald
Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly
from the 63rd district
Incumbent
Assumed office
January 3, 2005
Preceded byBonnie Ladwig
Personal details
Born (1968-07-05) July 5, 1968 (age 53)
Burlington, Wisconsin, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)
Amy Kuemmel
​
​
(m. 2000; div. 2003)​

Samantha Schmitt
​
​
(m. 2008; div. 2017)​

​
(m. 2017)​
EducationUniversity of Wisconsin–Whitewater (BA)
WebsiteOfficial page
Official twitter

Robin J. Vos (born July 5, 1968) is an American Republican politician and the 79th speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly, serving in that role since 2013. He has been a member of the Assembly since 2005,[1] representing most of the southern half of Racine County.[2] Vos is also president of National Conference of State Legislatures.[3]

Vos came to prominence for his role in shepherding legislation to weaken bargaining rights and labor unions in Wisconsin while Scott Walker was governor, which culminated in the 2012 Wisconsin gubernatorial recall election.[4] During the governorship of Tony Evers, a Democrat, Vos has sought to curb the governor's powers.[5] During the COVID-19 pandemic, Vos blocked Evers's efforts to increase the safety and accessibility of elections, sought to hinder public health measures to mitigate the pandemic, such as mask mandates, and opposed vaccine requirements by private businesses.

Early life and education[]

Vos was born in 1968, in Burlington, Wisconsin, in Racine County. He graduated from Burlington High School in 1986.[6]

Vos attended the University of Wisconsin–Whitewater, where he studied political science and public relations. While at Whitewater, he roomed with Reince Priebus, who later became chairman of the Republican Party of Wisconsin, chairman of the Republican National Committee, and White House chief of staff. In 1989, Wisconsin governor Tommy Thompson appointed Vos as a student representative on the University of Wisconsin board of regents. Vos graduated in 1991.[6]

Business career and early political career[]

After graduation, Vos worked as a legislative assistant to state representatives Jim Ladwig and Bonnie Ladwig.[6] In 1994, Vos was elected to the Racine county board of supervisors. He remained on the board for the next 10 years.[7][6] Also in 1994, Vos worked as district director for U.S. representative Mark Neumann of Wisconsin.[6]

In 1996 Vos purchased the RoJos Popcorn Company in Burlington.[6][8] In 2020, his popcorn business, Robin J. Vos Enterprises, received more than $150,000 in coronavirus relief from the Paycheck Protection Program.[9]

Vos has an ownership stake of $4.8 million in rental properties in Whitewater, Wisconsin.[10] In 2021, Vos led Republican efforts in the Wisconsin legislature to redirect COVID-19 relief payments so that they would go directly to landlords, such as Vos, rather than renters.[10]

Wisconsin state legislature[]

In 2004, Vos ran for the Wisconsin state assembly to succeed Ladwig in the 63rd district. He was unopposed in the 2004 primary and general elections.

After Republicans won full control of state government in Wisconsin in 2010, Vos rose to prominence pushing the controversial budget restructuring act alongside governor Scott Walker. The law curtailed collective bargaining rights and public education funding in Wisconsin, and led to massive protests around the state, culminating in the 2012 Wisconsin gubernatorial recall election.[6]

In 2013, Vos was elected speaker of the Wisconsin assembly.[6][11] Between 2014 and 2018 he received about $57,000 in travel and perks from lobbyists and organizations. He said he was certain he had followed ethics rules with his travel.[12][13][14] Vos supports deregulating the payday loan industry.[12] He opposes Medicaid expansion and spearheaded Republican efforts to block Medicaid expansion in Wisconsin.[15][16] Vos argued against Medicaid, saying "Trapping people in the life of poverty is not something that there's ever the right amount of money to do."

In 2016 Vos endorsed Marco Rubio for the Republican nomination for president. After Rubio dropped out of the race, Vos endorsed Ted Cruz.[17] In August 2016, Vos wrote in a column on a conservative website that he was "embarrassed" that Donald Trump was "leading our ticket" as the presumptive Republican nominee;[18][19] the next month, Vos said that he was "proud" to support Trump's candidacy due to his belief that Trump would energize Republican voters.[20]

In February 2019 Vos defended Brian Hagedorn, a judge of the Wisconsin Court of Appeals running for a seat on the Wisconsin Supreme Court, amid reports that Hagedorn had founded a school in 2016 that allowed for the expulsion of students and faculty if they were gay. Vos said he believed Hagedorn could rule fairly on LGBT issues.[21]

In July 2019 Vos was widely criticized for refusing to prohibit overnight floor sessions or allow Democratic lawmaker Jimmy Anderson, who is paralyzed and uses a wheelchair, to phone into committee meetings.[22][23] He later accused Anderson of political grandstanding[24] and attempting to sabotage him as Vos took on his new national role as head of the National Conference of State Legislatures.[25]

In November 2020, Vos was reelected by 16 percentage points.[26]

In November 2020, days after the unofficial count of the 2020 presidential election showed Joe Biden winning Wisconsin by 20,000 votes, Vos directed an investigatory committee to review how the election was administered. This came as Trump made false claims of election fraud. Vos also made misleading claims about the election process.[27] In May 2021, Vos appropriated $680,000 in taxpayer money to fund an investigation into fraud in the 2020 election; there was no evidence of substantial fraud in the election and all lawsuits that claimed fraud were dismissed by courts.[28][29] When asked whether it was a conspiracy theory that the 2020 election was stolen, Vos said it was not.[30]

In February 2021, Vos sent a letter to the governor asking him to order that flags on state buildings be lowered in honor of right-wing radio host Rush Limbaugh, who had recently died. Lauded by conservatives, Limbaugh was a divisive figure criticized for his derogatory comments about women, racial minorities and LGBT people, as well as on-air promotion of conspiracy theories and falsehoods.[31][32] Vos praised Limbaugh as "a pioneer in talk radio, a best-selling author and a commentator who inspired generations to become active in politics."[31]

In October 2021, Vos defended a heavily pro-Republican gerrymandered redistricting map for Wisconsin.[33]

Curbing the powers of the Evers administration[]

Vos has been described as having a significant role in countering Governor Tony Evers.[4] After Evers, the Democratic nominee, won the 2018 Wisconsin gubernatorial election, defeating incumbent governor Scott Walker, Vos was the first public official to propose curbing the incoming governor's powers.[5] He claimed it was to restore a balance of power between the governor and the legislature, despite having previously voted to expand gubernatorial power.[34][35] Vos also said the changes were intended to lock in laws passed by Republicans and to prevent the incoming Democratic administration from fulfilling its campaign pledges, particularly a pledge to withdraw Wisconsin from a lawsuit seeking to overturn the federal Affordable Care Act.[36] The Republican-led legislature was called into a December lame duck session and passed laws decreasing the powers of the incoming governor, limiting early voting, and giving the legislature more control. Walker then signed the bills.[37]

Christopher Beem of the McCourtney Institute of Democracy at Pennsylvania State University described Wisconsin Republicans' power grab as a "deeply undemocratic act" that, while possibly legal, eroded democratic norms by frustrating the expressed will of a majority of the electorate, immediately after an election, to make it "more difficult for the incoming administration to undertake actions that the majority has just shown that it wants."[38] In June 2019, the Wisconsin Supreme Court rejected a challenge brought by the League of Women Voters and other groups to the laws enacted in the December 2018 lame-duck session, ruling in a 4–3 decision that extraordinary sessions are constitutional.[39]

In 2021, Politico wrote that Vos was effectively a shadow governor of Wisconsin as he and the Republican majority in the state senate had used their powers "to block, thwart or resist almost every significant move made by Democratic Gov. Tony Evers."[4]

Robin Vos on election day during the COVID-19 Pandemic

COVID-19 pandemic[]

Further information: COVID-19 pandemic in Wisconsin

In April 2020, amid the coronavirus pandemic, Vos opposed calls by Wisconsin Governor Tony Evers, a Democrat, to delay the state's primary election from early April to late May, to make it a mail-in election, and to mail ballots to all registered voters.[40][41] The legislature adjourned without taking action on any of those proposals. When the governor then issued a last-minute emergency order to suspend in-person voting, Vos and the state senate majority leader appealed the order to the state supreme court, which overturned it, and the election was held as scheduled.[42] Due to the coronavirus pandemic, it was estimated that many voters would be effectively disenfranchised, and in-person voting was also considered a public health risk.[40][43] According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, "Vos had no answer to how local election officials are supposed to keep people safe as a massive shortage of poll workers has resulted in the closure or reduction of polling locations, forcing more people to vote at a single site."[44] Vos said, "If you are bored at home and sick of watching Netflix, volunteer to go and help at the polls."[44]

On election day, Vos served as an election inspector.[45] While dressed in full-body personal protective equipment,[46] he said it was "incredibly safe" to vote at the polls.[45] Vos later clarified that the city he was volunteering for required that he wear the protective equipment.[47]

Because the Republican-controlled Wisconsin Legislature did not timely waive a requirement that unemployed Wisconsinites wait a week before they can be reimbursed unemployment benefits, Wisconsin lost $25 million in federal funding from the CARES Act. Vos and Senate Majority Leader Scott Fitzgerald had been warned that this would happen if the waiver was not passed in time.[48]

In October 2020, during the pandemic, Vos and Fitzgerald filed a brief in support of a lawsuit by the right-wing law firm Wisconsin Institute for Law and Liberty that sought to block a statewide mandate, issued by Governor Evers, requiring the wearing of face masks in indoor public places to prevent the spread of the virus.[49][50] Evers issued the mandate at a time when cases and hospitalizations in Wisconsin were surging, straining the state's hospital systems.[50] The legislature could have convened a session to terminate the health emergency declaration and strike down Evers's mandate, but Wisconsin Republicans opted to go to court instead, so as to prevent vulnerable Republican legislators from having to vote against face mask mandates just before an election.[49][50] A state judge rejected the attempt to strike down Evers's order, finding that state law "gives the governor broad discretion to act whenever conditions in the state constitute a public health emergency" and considering the fact that "The legislature can end the state of emergency at any time, but so far, it has declined to do so."[50]

In March 2021, after Congress passed a $1.9 trillion COVID-relief stimulus package, Vos suggested that Wisconsin should reject the federal government's assistance to provide the unemployed with unemployment benefits for their first week of unemployment.[51]

In November 2021, Vos said that members of the bipartisan Wisconsin Elections Commission (WEC) should "probably" face felony charges for easing some of the regulations around voting in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic.[52]

Vos opposes vaccine requirements for private businesses' employees and customers.[53] In December 2021, he criticized vaccine requirements for health care workers, blaming the requirements for bed shortages at hospitals.[53]

Memberships[]

Vos is second vice-chair of the board of directors of the State Legislative Leaders Foundation.[54] A member of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC), Vos is the group's former Wisconsin state chair.[55]

Electoral history[]

Wisconsin Assembly (2004–present)[]

Year Election Date Elected Defeated Total Plurality
2004 General[56] November 2 Robin Vos Republican 23,682 99.37% 23,831 23,533
2006 General[57] November 7 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 14,329 58.16% Tim Daley Dem. 10,304 41.82% 24,637 4,025
2008 General[58] November 4 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 20,172 61.51% Linda Flashinski Dem. 12,609 38.45% 32,794 7,563
2010 General[59] November 2 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 19,525 99.35% 19,653 19,397
2012 General[60] November 6 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 17,704 58.31% Kelley Albrecht Dem. 12,637 41.62% 30,362 5,067
2014 Primary[61] August 26 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 4,594 89.45% Bryn Biemeck Rep. 540 10.51% 5,136 4,054
General[62] November 4 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 15,361 63.23% Andy Mitchell Dem. 8,917 36.70% 24,295 6,444
2016 General[63] November 8 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 18,771 64.16% Andy Mitchell Dem. 10,487 35.84% 29,258 8,284
2018 General[64] November 6 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 16,775 61.00% Joel Jacobsen Dem. 10,705 38.93% 27,499 6,070
2020 General[65] November 3 Robin Vos (inc.) Republican 19,919 58.44% Joel Jacobsen Dem. 14,132 41.46% 34,087 5,787

References[]

  1. ^ Profile, legis.wisconsin.gov; accessed November 15, 2014.
  2. ^ Wisconsin Blue Book 2011-2012, Biographical sketch of Robin Vos, p. 61.
  3. ^ "Wisconsin Speaker Robin Vos to Head NCSL". National Conference of State Legislatures. August 19, 2019.
  4. ^ a b c Vock, Daniel C. "How Wisconsin is ruled by a shadow governor". POLITICO. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  5. ^ a b "What The Wisconsin Political Power Play Means For American Democracy". www.wbur.org. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
  6. ^ a b c d e f g h "Robin Vos Timeline". Wisconsin State Journal. December 22, 2018. Retrieved February 23, 2019.
  7. ^ "Robin Vos - Ballotpedia". Retrieved October 26, 2017.
  8. ^ "Robin Vos, the man amidst the controversy", journaltimes.com; accessed November 15, 2014.
  9. ^ Marley, Patrick. "Assembly Speaker Robin Vos' popcorn company received $150,000 or more under the Paycheck Protection Program". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved July 14, 2020.
  10. ^ a b Marley, Patrick. "Republicans set to vote on $2 billion in spending that may violate federal rules". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved April 13, 2021.
  11. ^ "Robin J. Vos".
  12. ^ a b Patrick Marley. "Assembly Speaker Robin Vos received $57,000 in travel and other perks since 2014". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 3, 2018.
  13. ^ Julie Carr Smyth. Robin Vos among GOP leaders who made trip with lobbyists and controversial lawmaker". Wisconsin State Journal, April 18, 2018.
  14. ^ Jason Stein and Patrick Marley. "Speaker Robin Vos took free trip to London with lobbyists and leaders from other states". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, April 12, 2018.
  15. ^ "Wisconsin Assembly Speaker Robin Vos vows to 'never' take Medicaid expansion money". WIZM 92.3FM 1410AM. October 3, 2018. Retrieved May 30, 2019.
  16. ^ "A health-care change could bring the state $1.6 billion in federal dollars. Republican legislators are uninterested". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. 2021. Retrieved April 30, 2021.
  17. ^ Sommerhauser, Mark (March 25, 2016). "Robin Vos endorses Ted Cruz". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved March 25, 2016.
  18. ^ Andrew Beckett, Vos 'embarrassed' Trump leading Republican ticket, Wisconsin Radio Network (August 5, 2016).
  19. ^ Patrick Marley, GOP leader embarrassed by Trump, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (August 5, 2016).
  20. ^ Shawn Johnson, Vos 'Proud' To Back Trump, Says He'll Help Assembly Republicans, Wisconsin Public Radio (September 29, 2016).
  21. ^ "Realtors revoke endorsement of Supreme Court candidate Brian Hagedorn over school's policy on gay students". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  22. ^ "Republicans won't let Democratic lawmaker in wheelchair phone in". Associated Press. August 1, 2019.
  23. ^ Pierce, Charles P. (August 2, 2019). "This Is Called Being a Colossal Dick for No Reason at All". Esquire.
  24. ^ Smith, Matt (August 1, 2019). "Assembly speaker accuses paralyzed lawmaker of 'political grandstanding'". WISN 12 News.
  25. ^ Beck, Molly (August 15, 2019). "Robin Vos accuses paralyzed lawmaker of trying to sabotage him by seeking accommodations". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  26. ^ "Robin Vos, bad polls and other winners and losers in the 2020 election". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved November 11, 2020.
  27. ^ Vetterkind, Riley (November 12, 2021). "Robin Vos directs Assembly committee with subpoena power to review election administration". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  28. ^ Bayatpour, A. J. (August 31, 2021). "GOP committee approves spending $680K on election investigation; Evers calls vote "outrageous"". WKOW. Retrieved September 1, 2021.
  29. ^ Marley, Patrick. "Top Wisconsin Republican Robin Vos hires former cops to investigate November election". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved May 26, 2021.
  30. ^ "Speaker Vos denies claim the election was stolen is a conspiracy theory, defends Gableman's staffers". CBS58. Retrieved December 9, 2021.
  31. ^ a b Riley Vetterkind. "Robin Vos wants Tony Evers to lower flags in honor of late conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh". Wisconsin State Journal. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  32. ^ "Assembly Speaker Vos asks Evers to lower flags for Limbaugh". Star Tribune. Retrieved February 18, 2021.
  33. ^ Johnson, Shawn (October 20, 2021). "New Republican-drawn maps would extend GOP edge in Wisconsin for next decade". Wisconsin Public Radio. Retrieved October 21, 2021.
  34. ^ BAUER, TODD RICHMOND and SCOTT. "Vos open to looking at ways to limit Evers' powers". Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  35. ^ "Vos open to limiting power of Evers as governor". Associated Press. Retrieved November 10, 2018.
  36. ^ Berman, Russell (December 5, 2018). "'Wisconsin Has Never Seen Anything Like This'". The Atlantic. Retrieved December 11, 2018.
  37. ^ Johnson, Shawn; White, Laurel (December 5, 2020). "Wisconsin Legislature Works Overnight To Approve Limiting Gov.-Elect Tony Evers' Power". Wisconsin Public Radio. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  38. ^ Beem, Christopher. "Wisconsin GOP's power grab is a danger to democracy". The Conversation. Retrieved December 12, 2018.
  39. ^ Briana Reilly, Wisconsin Supreme Court ruling upholds lame-duck laws, The Capital Times (June 21, 2019).
  40. ^ a b Natasha Korecki & Zach Montellaro (April 3, 2020). "Wisconsin governor makes last-minute plea to delay Tuesday election". Politico.
  41. ^ Danbeck, Jackson. "Wisconsin GOP says election should go on as scheduled". Associated Press. Retrieved April 4, 2020 – via WMTV.
  42. ^ Karson, Kendall (April 6, 2020). "Wisconsin Supreme Court blocks order by governor suspending in-person voting, putting Tuesday's election back on track". ABC News. Retrieved May 11, 2020.
  43. ^ Montellaro, Zach. "'It is terrifying': Wisconsin leaders warn of coronavirus disaster with Tuesday's vote". POLITICO. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  44. ^ a b Beck, Molly. "Republican lawmakers reject Wisconsin Gov. Tony Evers' call to stop in-person voting Tuesday because of virus threat". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved April 4, 2020.
  45. ^ a b Sullivan, Kate. "Republican Wisconsin assembly speaker wears protective gear while ironically telling voters they are 'incredibly safe to go out'". CNN. Retrieved April 8, 2020.
  46. ^ Panetta, Grace (April 7, 2020). "Watch Wisconsin's Assembly Speaker tell voters it is 'incredibly safe to go out' while dressed in head to toe PPE gear". Business Insider. Retrieved April 7, 2020.
  47. ^ Vock, Daniel C. (September 15, 2021). "How Wisconsin is ruled by a shadow governor". Politico. Retrieved September 25, 2021.
  48. ^ Beck, Molly (May 7, 2020). "Wisconsin lost out on $25M in federal funding because GOP lawmakers waited to pass coronavirus relief bill". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
  49. ^ a b "GOP leaders go to court in support of effort to strike down Tony Evers' mask mandate". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved October 3, 2020.
  50. ^ a b c d Molly Beck & Patrick Marley, Judge denies GOP effort to end Tony Evers' mask mandate, upholding governor's ability to issue health orders, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (October 12, 2020).
  51. ^ Schulte, Patrick Marley and Laura. "Vos expresses reservations about again suspending waiting period for unemployment benefits". Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  52. ^ "Vos says elections commissioners should "probably" face criminal charges". WKOW. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
  53. ^ a b "'This won't stop until everybody does their part ': Hospitals reject Vos claim vaccine mandates to blame for bed shortages". WKOW. Retrieved January 7, 2022.
  54. ^ "State Legislative Leaders Foundation".
  55. ^ Lazic, Nikolina (April 30, 2014). "Federal Court Strikes Down WI's 'Discriminatory' Voter ID as Unconstitutional". progressive.org. Retrieved November 15, 2014.
  56. ^ Results of Fall General Election - 11/02/2004 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 1, 2004. p. 33. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  57. ^ Results of Fall General Election - 11/07/2006 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 5, 2006. p. 32. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  58. ^ Fall General Election - 11/04/2008 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. November 24, 2008. p. 63. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  59. ^ 2010 Fall General Election Results Summary (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin State Elections Board. December 1, 2010. p. 24. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  60. ^ Canvass Results for 2012 Presidential and General Election- 11/6/2012 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. December 26, 2012. pp. 23–24. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  61. ^ Canvass Results for 2014 Fall Partisan Primary - 8/12/2014 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. August 29, 2014. p. 40. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  62. ^ Canvass Results for 2014 General Election - 11/4/2014 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. November 26, 2014. p. 23. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  63. ^ Canvass Results for 2016 General Election - 11/8/2016 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. December 22, 2016. p. 23. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  64. ^ Canvass Results for 2018 General Election - 11/6/2018 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. February 22, 2019. p. 24. Retrieved August 25, 2020.
  65. ^ Canvass Results for 2020 General Election - 11/3/2020 (PDF) (Report). Wisconsin Elections Commission. November 18, 2020. p. 22. Retrieved December 2, 2020.

External links[]

Wisconsin State Assembly
Preceded by Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 63rd district
January 3, 2005 – present 		Incumbent
Preceded by Speaker of the Wisconsin State Assembly
January 7, 2013 – present
Retrieved from ""