"I've lived all my life in the shadow of the Capitol,” said former state Sen. Fred Risser, pictured at his home on Capitol Square in February. The Madison Democrat, who turns 99 in May, witnessed some of the more seismic shifts in state and national politics over his 64 years in the state Legislature.
“I was interested in promoting ideas that I thought were good for the state of Wisconsin,” Risser said, recalling an era when lawmakers could still be persuaded by members of the opposing party. “My purpose was to promote good government, at least I thought it was.”
The Wisconsin State Journal’s account of the election of Col. Clement Warner in 1866, Fred Risser’s great-grandfather and the first of four generations to represent the Madison area in the state Legislature.
"I've lived all my life in the shadow of the Capitol,” said former state Sen. Fred Risser, pictured at his home on Capitol Square in February. The Madison Democrat, who turns 99 in May, witnessed some of the more seismic shifts in state and national politics over his 64 years in the state Legislature.
“I was interested in promoting ideas that I thought were good for the state of Wisconsin,” Risser said, recalling an era when lawmakers could still be persuaded by members of the opposing party. “My purpose was to promote good government, at least I thought it was.”
The Wisconsin State Journal’s account of the election of Col. Clement Warner in 1866, Fred Risser’s great-grandfather and the first of four generations to represent the Madison area in the state Legislature.
