Michael Waldman
Mr. Waldman is the executive director of the Brennan Center for Justice at NYU School of Law, a nonpartisan think tank and advocacy group that focuses on democracy and justice. It leads legal efforts to respond to the recent Citizens United decision, and is the leading force working for voter registration modernization. The Boston Globe recently called it called the Brennan Center "indispensible."
Waldman was Director of Speechwriting for President Bill Clinton from 1995-1999, serving as Assistant to the President. He worked with the President and senior officials to write or edit nearly 2,000 speeches, including four State of the Union and two Inaugural Addresses. Previously, he was Special Assistant to the President for Policy Coordination (1993-1995). Mr. Waldman was the top administration policy aide working on campaign finance reform, one of the Center's signature issues, and drafted the administration's public financing proposal.
He is the author of several books, including A Return to Common Sense: Seven Bold Ways to Revitalize Democracy (Sourcebooks, 2008); My Fellow Americans (Sourcebooks, 2003); POTUS Speaks (Simon & Schuster, 2000); and Who Robbed America? A Citizens' Guide to the Savings and Loan Scandal (Random House, 1990).
Prior to his government service, Mr. Waldman was the director of Public Citizen's Congress Watch, then the capital's largest consumer lobbying office. After leaving the White House, he was a Lecturer in Public Policy at Harvard University's John F. Kennedy School of Government (2001-2003), and was a litigator in private practice. He is a graduate of Columbia College and New York University School of Law.
