PHIL BARUTH currently serves as the President Pro Tempore of the Vermont Senate. He also serves as Clerk of the Committee on Appropriations and as a member of the Senate Committee on Judiciary. Elected to the Senate originally in 2010, he has since served on the Education, Economic Development, Judiciary, and Agriculture Committees and served four years as Senate Majority Leader. Phil has been teaching in the English Department at the University of Vermont since 1993, where he specializes in Creative Writing, Postmodern American Literature and Culture, Eighteenth-Century British Literature, and Vermont Literature. Prior to 2010, Phil spent a dozen years as an award-winning commentator for Vermont Public Radio; he has spent the last twenty years writing novels as well. The X President, a darkly comic take on the life and legacy of Bill Clinton, became a New York Times Notable Book in 2003. The Brothers Boswell, his most recent novel, was listed as one of the Best Books of 2009 by the Washington Post. He lives in Burlington. Member of the Senate: 2011 - present.1
Baruth is noted for his strong advocacy for gun control. He first proposed an assault weapons ban in 2013 and later supported comprehensive background check legislation. His efforts in the Senate have also focused on education, economic development, and agriculture.
In addition to his political career, Baruth is an accomplished writer and commentator. He has authored several novels and non-fiction works. His novel “The X President” was recognized as a New York Times Notable Book in 2003. He also wrote a full-length biography of Senator Patrick Leahy, published in 2017. Baruth’s commentary work includes a twelve-year stint as a commentator for Vermont Public Radio, where he hosted “Camel’s Hump Radio.”
