Republican lawmaker says he wanted to punch GOP leader

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By SCOTT BAUER
Associated Press

MADISON, Wis. (AP) — A Republican state lawmaker and candidate for governor said he wanted to punch Assembly Speaker Robin Vos “right in the nose” after he kicked him out of a meeting about decertifying President Joe Biden’s 2020 win in Wisconsin.

Rep. Timothy Ramthun said in an online interview posted on YouTube on Wednesday that he was angry with Vos after the speaker did not allow him in the closed-door meeting that day. Ramthun has unsuccessfully tried to decertify Biden’s win, a move Vos opposes.

“It was the perfect opportunity to punch him right in the nose and say go pound sand, but I was concerned about the collateral damage,” Ramthun said after Vos kicked him out of the meeting. “There’s only one way to treat a bully and that’s to punch him right back in the nose but in this case I couldn’t take the chance because he could have just ended it and say, ‘Fine I’m outta here’ and left. And then it would have been on me.”

Ramthun spoke with reporters in the hallway as the meeting was ongoing and said it should be open to the public. Vos, who has clashed with Ramthun before, called the meeting to discuss the legalities of decertifying the election with attorneys and advocates who support it and those who say it’s illegal.

After the meeting, Vos said he remained opposed to decertifying Biden’s win.

Vos reacted Thursday to Ramthun’s comments, saying in a statement that “Rep. Ramthun says a lot of foolish things, this is one more on the list.”

Ramthun did not immediately return a message Thursday.

Ramthun is one of several Republican candidates running for governor, including former Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and businessman Kevin Nicholson. They are seeking to take on Democratic Gov. Tony Evers.