Robert Fisher (New Hampshire politician) explained

Robert Fisher
State House:New Hampshire
District:Belknap 9
Term Start:December 3, 2014
Term End:May 18, 2017
Predecessor:Beth Arsenault
Successor:Charlie St. Clair
Party:Republican
Otherparty:Democratic (2012) [1]
Alma Mater:Winnisquam Regional High School[2]
Profession:Politician, Computer repairman
Termend:May 17, 2017

Robert Fisher is an American politician who served as a Republican member of the New Hampshire House of Representatives.[2] He represented the Belknap 9 district, which includes the town of Belmont, NH and the city of Laconia, from December 2014 until his resignation in May 2017.

Political career

In 2012, Robert ran as a Democrat for the New Hampshire House of Representatives, but was unsuccessful.[1] In 2014, he ran for the House of Representatives again, this time as a Republican. He won the 2014 election, and was re-elected in 2016.[1]

As a representative, he served on no committees by his own request.[2]

After the discovery that he founded and moderated the controversial subreddit r/TheRedPill, Fisher resigned from political office on May 17, 2017.[3]

r/TheRedPill controversy

In 2017, The Daily Beast claimed that Fisher was the founder and a moderator, under the alias pk_atheist, of the subreddit "/r/TheRedPill", known for its misogynistic content.[4] According to Daily Beast, Fisher used several pseudonyms, including "redpillschool" and "Morpheus Manfred", which was used for several media interviews on behalf of the forum.[3] [5] [6]

Speaking to WMUR, Fisher admitted to writing at least some of the material attributed to him, which he characterized as "some injudicious things about the opposite sex following a bad breakup",[7] including, from a 2008 post:

Rape isn't an absolute bad, because the rapist I think probably likes it a lot. I think he'd say it's quite good, really. ... . I think rape is bad, I'm not arguing for it. I'm arguing against the idea of an absolute truth.

Fisher also told WMUR:

That was an out-of-context quote from a nearly decade-old debate about the failings of moral relativism."

Following bipartisan comments calling for him to resign from his state House of Representatives seat, Fisher stated in April that he did not plan to do so.[8]

On May 17, a Republican-led House committee voted 8-6 along party lines to recommend no disciplinary action against Fisher. Less than an hour later, while an investigation for perjury was getting started, Fisher resigned under social and political pressure.[9] House Minority Leader Steve Shurtleff had called for a perjury investigation by the state attorney general's office, but said that Fisher's resignation made this no longer necessary.[10]

Personal life

Fisher is an atheist.[11]

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Robert Fisher. Ballotpedia. April 25, 2017.
  2. Web site: Representative Robert Fisher (r). State of New Hampshire House of Representatives. May 10, 2016.
  3. News: Zadrozny . Brandy . Brandy Zadrozny . Bacarisse . Bonnie. May 17, 2017. New Hampshire State Rep Who Created Reddit's 'Red Pill' Resigns. Daily Beast.
  4. News: Bacarisse. Bonnie. The Republican Lawmaker Who Secretly Created Reddit's Women-Hating 'Red Pill'. May 25, 2017. The Daily Beast. January 30, 2017.
  5. News: Marche. Stephen. Swallowing the Red Pill: a journey to the heart of modern misogyny. May 25, 2017. The Guardian. April 14, 2016.
  6. News: US Supreme Court considers gay marriage, Newshour - BBC World Service. May 25, 2017. BBC Newshour. March 26, 2013. 47:48.
  7. Web site: Updated: Sununu says resignation 'in order' for GOP lawmaker connected to misogynistic online messages. John. DiStaso. April 26, 2017.
  8. Web site: N.H. lawmaker accused of starting 'Red Pill' forum on Reddit won't resign. Boston Globe. April 26, 2017. Ebbert, Stephanie.
  9. News: Updated: 'Red Pill' creator Fisher resigns from NH House after committee recommends no action. DiStaso. John. May 17, 2017. WMUR. May 18, 2017. en.
  10. News: Metler. Katie. 'Shame. Shame.' N.H. lawmaker resigns after outcry over his 'woman-hating' Reddit forum. May 25, 2017. Washington Post. May 18, 2017.
  11. News: Stedman . Chris . Chris Stedman . Too Many Atheists Are Veering Dangerously Toward the Alt-Right . July 11, 2020 . . April 2, 2018.