| Glenn Grothman | |
|---|---|
| Grothman in July 2010 | |
| Member of the Wisconsin Senate from the 20th district |
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| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2005 |
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| Preceded by | Mary Panzer |
| Member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from the 58th district |
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| In office December 1993 – 2005 |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | July 3, 1955 Milwaukee, Wisconsin |
| Political party | Republican |
| Residence | West Bend, Wisconsin |
| Profession | Attorney |
Glenn Grothman (born July 3, 1955) is the Republican Assistant Majority Leader of the Wisconsin Senate, representing the 20th District in southeastern Wisconsin since 2005. The district includes the city of West Bend, other parts of Washington County, and parts of Fond du Lac, Dodge, Sheboygan, and Ozaukee counties. Previously, Grothman served in the Wisconsin State Assembly, representing the 58th Assembly District from 1993 until 2005, and serving as the vice chair of the Assembly's Republican caucus from 1999 to 2004.
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Grothman graduated from Homestead High School in Mequon, and attended the University of Wisconsin-Madison for his undergraduate degree.[1] In 1983, he received his law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School.
Grothman was elected to the 58th Assembly District in a special election held in December 1993. From 1999 to 2004, he was the Assembly Majority Caucus Vice Chairperson. Grothman was elected to the Senate unopposed in 2004.[2] From 2007 to 2008, he was the Senate Minority Caucus Chairperson. From 2009 to 2010 he was the Senate Assistant Minority Leader, becoming the Senate Assistant Majority Leader in 2011.[1]
As of 2009, Grothman was the only Republican Wisconsin Senator with a law degree.[3]
He opposed a provision in a 2010 sex education law that prohibited teachers from promoting bias based on sexual orientation, saying that he did not believe the topic should be discussed at all in the public schools. According to the Capitol Times, Grothman's opposition was based on "the belief that instructors who lead these talks would have what he called an "agenda" to persuade students to become gay."[4] Grothman believes the kindergarten program for 4-year-olds should be defunded by Governor Scott Walker because any academic benefits disappear by the fourth grade, and the program is used by school districts to pad their budgets to get more state aid.[5]
Grothman opposed a bill that would increase funding for anti-smoking programs from $10 to $30 million. He believes that anti-smoking campaigns do not work, and are no longer necessary, writing "Everybody knows you're not supposed to smoke!."[6] He also voted against the ban on smoking in bars, restaurants and other small business that became effective in July 2010.[7] After the bill was passed, he introduced new legislation to allow guests to smoke in hotel rooms.
Grothman has argued that Martin Luther King Jr. Day should not be a work holiday, calling the day off "an insult to all the other taxpayers around the state". He has expressed doubts that "state workers would be 'checking out DVDs or reading books' about King and would probably just be out shopping or watching television instead."[8] He released a statement opposing a Kwanzaa holiday, stating that we should "treat Kwanzaa with the contempt it deserves before it becomes a permanent part of our culture."[9]
An advocate of 2nd Amendment rights, Grothman is a long-time supporter of concealed carry legislation, but does not advocate allowing concealed weapons in taverns. He believes concealed-carry laws would deter criminal behavior, with permits being awarded to law-abiding citizens who pass a firearm safety course.
He is a co-sponsor of Senate Bill 19 (2011), which removes the requirement of mandatory disinfection of groundwater in municipal water systems, a requirement that was imposed in reaction to a Cryptosporidium outbreak in 1993, which killed at least 104 citizens of Milwaukee, and sickened thousands of others.[10]
Grothman has been a vocal proponent of SB11, a controversial bill proposed by Governor Scott Walker in early 2011. He has said he supports the so called budget repair bill because it is fiscally responsible. In a recent press interview, he said that he did not "find it impressive" that over 70,000 protesters marched on the capitol.[11]
During the protests, Grothman was cornered by almost 200 pro-union protesters yelling "Shame! Shame!" outside the state capitol building. Grothman said he was not concerned about violence at the time, adding that, "They're loud, they'll give you the finger, and they yell at you, but I really think deep down inside they're just mostly college kids having fun, just like they're having fun sleeping with their girlfriends on air mattresses. That's the guts of that crowd." He also described the protesters as "a different breed of person" and "a bunch of slobs taking up the building."[12][13]
During this time, Grothman also advocated the hiring of more business-friendly individuals to the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. In doing so, he went out of his way to single out one of the University of Wisconsin campuses as a target: "Maybe you (should) look to hire those people who know what the real world is like, rather than a recent graduate from UW-Stevens Point who doesn't know what the real world is like." This was only days before appearing at UW—Stevens Point with the Joint Finance Committee for a day of hearings on Scott Walker's budget bill.[14]
Grothman was subject to a recall effort in the spring of 2011, but the effort failed, collecting only 75% of the required signatures.[15]
| Wisconsin State Senate District 20 Election 2004[2] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Republican | Glenn Grothman | 75,424 | 99.15% | ||
| Scattering | 649 | .85% | |||
| Wisconsin State Senate District 20 Election 2008[16] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Republican | Glennn Grothman | 69,942 | 80.26% | ||
| Democratic | Clyde Winter | 17,113 | 19.64% | ||
| Scattering | 91 | .10% | |||
| Wisconsin State Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mary Panzer |
Wisconsin State Senator - 20th Senate District 2004 – Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
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