Westerman worked as an engineer and forester before being elected to the Arkansas House in 2010. He was formerly employed as an engineer and forester by the Mid-South Engineering Company. He served as president of the Arkansas chapter of the American Society of Agricultural and Biological Engineering. He is also a former chair of the Arkansas Academy of Biological and Agricultural Engineers, and served on the Fountain Lake School Districtschool board.[1]
Westerman served as the House Minority Leader in 2012 and House Majority Leader in 2013.[6] He was the first Republican House Majority Leader in Arkansas since Reconstruction.[7]
Committee assignments
Revenue And Taxation Committee
Subcommittee on Sales, Use, Miscellaneous Taxes and Exemptions (chair)
State Agencies And Governmental Affairs Committee
Insurance and Commerce Committee[6]
U.S. House of Representatives
Westerman speaking at an event in June 2022
2014 election
Westerman won the Republican primary on May 20, defeating Tommy Moll, 54%–46%.[8] In November, he defeated Democratic nominee James Lee Witt, a former associate of U.S. PresidentBill Clinton, 54%-43%.[9]
On June 20, 2017, as the only certified forester in the House, Westerman introduced H.R.2936 - Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017,[11] providing for the culling of overgrown federally managed woods. After passing the House, it was introduced in the Senate on November 2, 2017, where it failed.
During the 2021 Capitol riot, Westerman, left behind in House minority leader Kevin McCarthy's office when he was evacuated by security, took a Civil War sword from a shattered display for protection and hid from rioters on a toilet.[16]
As of October 2021, Westerman had voted in line with Joe Biden's stated position 8% of the time.[17]
Westerman believes that "Life is a right. Abortion is not." He supported the 2022 overturning of Roe v. Wade.[23]
Environment
Westerman considers himself a conservationist.[24] He introduced the Trillion Trees Act on April 19, 2021, which planned to plant a trillion trees, but the bill was criticized by scientists and environmental groups.[25] Westerman has a 4% lifetime score from the League of Conservation Voters.[26]
^ a b"About". Congressman Bruce Westerman. December 3, 2012.
^"Bruce Westerman's Biography". votesmart.org. Retrieved January 12, 2014.
^Westerman plans to run for Sample's seat in House. Hot Springs Village Voice. September 30, 2009
^Westerman to resign from Fountain Lake school board. Hot Springs Village Voice. March 24, 2010
^"State Representative District 030 – Certified, 2010". sos.arkansas.gov. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
^ a b"Arkansas House Of Representatives". Arkanhouse.org. Archived from the original on January 2, 2015. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
^"Bruce Westerman Enters the Speaker Chat". WSJ. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
^"Arkansas Primary Election Results, May 20, 2014". KATV. Retrieved May 21, 2014.
^"RealClearPolitics – Election 2014 – Arkansas 4th District – Westerman vs. Witt". Realclearpolitics.com. Retrieved January 11, 2015.
^Huelskamp, Tim (February 12, 2015). "Cosponsors - H.J.Res.32 - 114th Congress (2015-2016): Marriage Protection Amendment". www.congress.gov. Retrieved April 11, 2022.
^Westerman, Bruce (November 2, 2017). "H.R.2936 - 115th Congress (2017-2018): Resilient Federal Forests Act of 2017". www.congress.gov. Retrieved April 2, 2019.
^Almukhtar, Sarah (December 19, 2017). "How Each House Member Voted on the Tax Bill". The New York Times. Retrieved December 21, 2017.
^Liptak, Adam (December 11, 2020). "Supreme Court Rejects Texas Suit Seeking to Subvert Election". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 12, 2020.
^"Order in Pending Case" (PDF). Supreme Court of the United States. December 11, 2020. Archived (PDF) from the original on December 11, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
^Diaz, Daniella. "Brief from 126 Republicans supporting Texas lawsuit in Supreme Court". CNN. Archived from the original on December 12, 2020. Retrieved December 11, 2020.
^Leibovich, Mark (April 25, 2021). "Kevin McCarthy, Four Months After Jan. 6, Still on Defensive Over Trump". The New York Times. Retrieved May 20, 2021.
^Bycoffe, Anna Wiederkehr and Aaron (April 22, 2021). "Does Your Member Of Congress Vote With Or Against Biden?". FiveThirtyEight.
^Perry, Kati; Dormido, Hannah; Zakharenko, Hanna; Blanco, Adrian. "How each House member voted for speaker". Washington Post. Retrieved October 19, 2023.
^"Bruce Westerman". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved April 23, 2023.
^"Membership". Republican Study Committee. December 6, 2017. Retrieved March 28, 2021.
^"Committees and Caucuses". Congressman Bruce Westerman. December 13, 2012. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
^"About Us". www.ccainstitute.org.
^Westerman, Bruce (June 24, 2022). "Westerman Reacts to the Reversal of Roe v. Wade". Congressman Bruce Westerman. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
^"Conservation is Conservative | Congressman Bruce Westerman". westerman.house.gov. April 23, 2021. Retrieved September 29, 2023.
^Joselow, Maxine (August 2, 2023). "Republicans want to plant a trillion trees. Scientists are skeptical". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
^"Check out Representative Bruce Westerman's Environmental Voting Record". League of Conservation Voters Scorecard. July 26, 2023. Retrieved September 28, 2023.
^"NRA-PVF | Grades | Arkansas". nrapvf.org. NRA-PVF. Archived from the original on November 4, 2014.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^"NRA-PVF | Grades | Arkansas". nrapvf.org. NRA-PVF. Archived from the original on November 7, 2022.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
^"The Voter's Self Defense System - Bruce Westerman". Vote Smart. Retrieved June 26, 2022.
External links
U.S. Representative Bruce Westerman official U.S. House website