Who is Amanda Fisk? Michigan village prez laughs at Rush Limbaugh's death in 'hateful' FB post, asked to quit
Middleville Village President Amanda Fisk from Michigan has courted controversy after laughing about conservative radio host Rush Limbaugh's death on social media. She shared an article on her personal Facebook page, with the comment “HAHAHAHAHA *deep breath* HAHAHAHAHA”.
The incident has sparked outrage, including a Change.org petition, calling for the immediate resignation of Fisk as Middleville Village President. This view was shared by several residents who spoke to Fox News. “Honestly, that’s not the way you represent a community,” said Amanda Pullen, who has lived in Middleville her whole life. “When you hold a public office like presidency or mayor, you lose that privacy. I mean, you’re in the public eye no matter what.”
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“It represents Middleville in a way that none of us want it to be represented. Middleville, as I know it, is a very kind and giving community,” said Carla Rock. "I didn’t like his views. I didn’t like the method he projected his views. I’m not a Rush Limbaugh fan.”
“It’s crushing to me, and it’s not the type of representation that our community deserves,” said Keara Hilton, who started the online petition asking for Fisk’s resignation. “He died of cancer, and she is the president of our village, and so I felt very strongly as someone who’s currently battling cancer that that is not the person I would choose to represent the village that I love.”
The Change.org petition states: “Amanda has been known to post quite controversial statements on social media but her recent post where she openly laughed over the death of public conservative figure Rush Limbaugh, was disgraceful, hateful and unbecoming of the public role she holds as the President of our peaceful, loving village. This type of behavior has been an ongoing theme with Ms. Fisk and it’s time we demand better from our local government.” The petition received 2,397 signatures when this article was published.
Fisk has since removed the personal posts and has reportedly asked others who have the screenshots not to send them out anymore. But that’s not enough for the women I spoke with. As per Fox News, many who spoke to the channel said that if Fisk doesn’t step down from her post by Tuesday, they will be going to the village meeting to address the board. Middleville Village Manager Patricia Rayl said, “She has her First Amendment right to freedom of expression on her own personal page, but as we are seeing, there may be political ramifications for exercising that right."
In January 2021, Fisk was elected as Village President, a role Charles Pullen served until he died in November 2020 from complications due to Covid-19. She was reportedly the youngest member of the Middleville Village Council when she was named President.
The 35-year-old said after taking the post last month, “I embraced hiking this year as a way to get out of the house amid shutdowns and quarantines, so embracing and expanding on our distinction as a North Country Trail Town is something I'd be interested in exploring.”
Fisk, who serves as Middleville’s representative on the Thornapple Area Parks and Recreation Commission, said back then: “The village is lacking a little in social media presence, and I think sometimes we struggle to reach members of our community in a way that works for them. I definitely want to work with staff, council, and other boards and commissions to get the message out about what we're doing and how they can be involved.”
Fisk is a 2003 graduate of Thornapple Kellogg High School. She holds an associate’s degree in sociology and psychology from Lansing Community College, a bachelor’s degree in psychology from Michigan State University and a master’s in public administration from Walden University.