12/8/2023 0 Comments Edwin meese today![]() ![]() And this is the kind of comparison that Meese’s men relish. Roosevelt’s battle over its striking down early New Deal legislation. Several career attorneys left and others who remain complain about being asked to “take indefensible positions.” No less significant is that a crucial part of Meese’s agenda-civil rights litigation-is now under the supervision of a political appointee instead of a well-respected career attorney who had difficulties with the new agenda.Īs a result, the Justice Department has not been so at odds with the court since Franklin D. Last year, Fried filed nearly twice as many “friend of the court” briefs as his predecessors and, staff members claim, did so in cases that the federal government had no business being in. The agenda is evident in the tone and language of briefs, as well as in the selection of issues and number of cases taken to the court. McCree Jr., who held the post during the Carter Administration, agrees that it “now appears to seize the initiative, whereas traditionally it has been more reactive.” Griswold, notes that in watching the office for 40 to 50 years he has “never seen an Administration get this involved, intervening so much.” Wade H. One former solicitor general who served the Johnson and Nixon administrations, Erwin N. The solicitor general now apparently shares Meese’s agenda. His successor, Charles Fried, is decidely hard-line and less respectful of the court’s precedents. But he came to be viewed as insufficiently aggressive in pressing positions on abortion, school prayer and the like. Lee, who held the position during Reagan’s first term, respected the traditional role of the office. The credibility of the office is now threatened by the move toward greater partisanship. While the solicitor general is a political appointee, the office is staffed largely by career attorneys who have enjoyed considerable political independence and a reputation as the court’s 10th member because of the high caliber of their work. That office decides which cases to appeal to the Supreme Court and defends the government’s positions. The extent to which Meese has politicized the Justice Department in order to push the President’s agenda is no clearer than in the Office of the Solicitor General. Rehnquist, Justice Antonin Scalia and others who might follow. The change is also reflected in the attitude that Reagan’s first Supreme Court appointee, Sandra Day O’Connor, is a bitter disappointment, and the heavy betting in favor of Chief Justice William H. Whereas Smith strove to make clear what the Reagan Administration is against-for example, the expansion of 14th Amendment protection to women and other minorities-Meese seeks to stake out what it stands for and to secure its achievements institutionally. Together, they have fashioned an ambitious agenda. His conservative instincts are matched with a cadre of young attorneys and speech writers. Meese has a far more political view of law than his predecessor, William French Smith, a quintessential Establishment lawyer. The shift in direction and ideological tone within the Justice Department is marked. Is Meese’s clout so great that diplomatic norms and channels may be ignored? As the country’s top law enforcement official, Meese has used the accompanying visibility to push Reagan’s policies. The Justice Department attempted to push through an early indictment of Zakharov without consulting the State Department. Daniloff and touched off an international dispute. Zakharov, which prompted the Soviet arrest of American journalist Nicholas S. Some in the State Department are now wondering about the arrest of Gennady F. Meese’s power extends to more than domestic politics. The council, composed of eight other Cabinet officials, advises the President on everything from civil rights and federalism to welfare, education, health and the environment. ![]() ![]() A further measure of that power is that soon after his controversial 1984 confirmation (following a 13-month delay for an investigation of his ethical conduct as counselor to the President), Meese became head of the newly created Domestic Policy Council. ![]() Meese’s enormous power follows largely from his close personal ties to the President, unmatched since Atty. His ambitious and coherent agenda will define much of the domestic policy during Ronald Reagan’s remaining years in office and attempt to preserve that policy for years to come. In addition to turning the Department of Justice around, his influence extends throughout the government. Edwin Meese III is now perhaps the single most powerful person in Reagan’s inner circle. ![]()
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