Backstory: The iron man of state politics
Wisconsin Sen. Fred Risser has been a state legislator for 50 years, longer than any current lawmaker in the nation.
from the March 1, 2007 edition
Page 3 of 3
Risser grew up on farmland his family owned on the shore of Madison's Lake Mendota. He knew what he was going to do, as he puts it, "from the time I knew anything." Politics was in his DNA. His great-grandfather, Col. Clement Warner, served in the state Assembly. His father was a lawyer and state lawmaker, whom Risser campaigned for by nailing posters to trees.
By the time Risser entered politics, he was the fourth generation in his family to represent Madison in the state legislature – each under a different party label (Unionist, Republican, Progressive, and now Democrat). "My ancestors have been consistent," he says. "But the parties have changed their philosophy."
Risser served in the Navy in World War II. Afterward, he attended Carleton College in Northfield, Minn., and ran cross-country ("I never finished first, but I never finished last," he says).
He got a law degree from the University of Oregon in Eugene before returning to Madison in 1952. A few years later, he worked to get his own representative, Ivan Nestingen, elected mayor of Madison. He had a good reason. "I knew I wanted to run for his seat," he says. "No one else knew it, but I knew it."
Risser won the seat in 1956, earning $200 a month. He was elected to the Senate six years later. While a dogged Democrat and shogun of parliamentary maneuvering, he has become an elder statesman in recent years.
"One thing he was able to do was bring some maturity to the Senate," says Joe Strohl, a former Democratic Senate leader. "When I was majority leader, we thought we could cut some corners and move things quickly.... But Fred always warned that if we do that, when the Republicans take over, they can do the same thing."
Yes, things have changed today. Women legislators now have bathrooms on the capitol's second floor. Senators now have offices. Smoking is on the verge of being banned in public buildings statewide – largely because of Risser. And there is an enormous amount of money in politics, something he would like to change.
"My father always said, 'Never rely on a political income for your living,' " Risser says. "That's why I always kept my law practice going."
Personally, things have changed for Risser, too. He and his wife recently sold off the old home on Risser Road and moved into an apartment with a view of the capitol. Looking out at the building he's worked in for 50 years, he won't rule out another run when his term is up in two years. But then, he won't rule out anything. "You only live once," he says.
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