The Attorney General's Lawyer: Inside the Meese Justice Department

(Hardback)

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This book offers an inside look at the principal decision makers and the major legal and constitutional decisions made in the Department of Justice under Attorney General Edwin Meese. This unique perspective is offered by Douglas Kmiec, former assistant attorney general in charge of the Office of Legal Counsel (OLC). His story is a fascinating chronicle and analysis of the significant issues addressed during and since the Reagan years. These important issues include: the controversy over methods of constitutional interpretation; the legitimacy of independent counsels; efforts by the president to control executive agencies and to keep Congress in check; family issues, including abortion, AIDS, limitations on pornography, and school choice; the protection of property and economic liberty; the declining role of state and local governments; quotas, affirmative action, and civil rights; the continuing saga of Iran-Contra; and contemporary calls for ethics reform. Important as a historical and legal analysis of the Reagan years, this work will be of interest to scholars and readers concerned with contemporary social and constitutional issues, the ramifications of the Reagan presidency, and how things have changed under George Bush. It is also the first revealing look at constitutional decisionmaking within OLC, an office that counts among its alumni the present Attorney General and two members of the Supreme Court.

Reviews

"An insider's incisive account of clashes over law and principle within the Reagan Justice Department. This valuable book will further solidify Professor Kmiec's prominent place among the conservative legal scholars of his generation."- Robert C. Ellickson Academic Dean and Meyer Professor of Law Yale University
"Douglas Kmiec's inside view of the Justice Department during the latter Reagan years illustrates how the clash of politics and constitutional theory can take place at the highest levels of government. . . . Kmiec writes with care so as not to overstate his case, and carefully sets the stage for his own position by a dispassionate review of the historical materials. The book provides another window to an important and easily misunderstood chapter of our not too distant past."- Richard A. Epstein James Parker Hall Distinguished Service Professor of Law The University of Chicago
"Douglas Kmiec's new book . . . discusses not only the many hot button issues that concerned the Reagan Justice Department, but provides fascinating insight into the controversial personalities who helped shape and defend public policy during those tumultuous years. Well-written, well documented, it broadens our understanding of the conflicts both within the Justice Department and between the office of the Solicitor General and the Supreme Court. It is both insightful and vastly informative. Anyone interested in the inner workings of justice in our national government ought to read this book."- Henry J. Hyde Member of Congress
"Professor Kmiec provides an accurate and insightful look at the work of the Department of Justice and, in particular, the Office of Legal Counsel. . . . This book recounts many of the constitutional and statutory issues upon which Professor Kmiec provided principled and candid legal advice to the President, to me, and indeed, to the entire executive branch. . . . This book is a vital addition to the undistorted history of the Reagan presidency and American justice."-Edwin Meese III 75'th Attorney General of the United States from the Foreword
A distinguished law professor (Univ. of Notre Dame) and the author of numerous books and articles on various legal subjects, Kmiec has the professional credentials to prepare this study of the Department of Justice while Edwin Meese III was attorney general. Kmiec essentially writes about his experiences and personal recollections in the Office of Legal Counsel, 1985-89. He discusses the great matters of public concern with which the Department was involved in litigation (e.g., abortion, federalism, pornography, and race relations) and details the process and constitutional rationale for decisions which were made.-Choice
"A distinguished law professor (Univ. of Notre Dame) and the author of numerous books and articles on various legal subjects, Kmiec has the professional credentials to prepare this study of the Department of Justice while Edwin Meese III was attorney general. Kmiec essentially writes about his experiences and personal recollections in the Office of Legal Counsel, 1985-89. He discusses the great matters of public concern with which the Department was involved in litigation (e.g., abortion, federalism, pornography, and race relations) and details the process and constitutional rationale for decisions which were made."-Choice

Author Bio

DOUGLAS W. KMIEC is a Professor of Law at the University of Notre Dame. He is the author of several books and many articles on constitutional law and other legal subjects. Kmiec directed the Office of Legal Counsel, U.S. Department of Justice during the years 1985 to 1989, first as deputy, and then as assistant attorney general. He has been honored as a White House Fellow and a 40th Anniversary Distinguished Fulbright Scholar.