Michael Wallace
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Michael Brunson Wallace is an attorney from Jackson, Mississippi. He was a controversial George W. Bush administration nominee to the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit. Perceived by some as a right wing extremist with a troubling record on civil rights, Wallace received a unanimous rating of "not qualified" from the American Bar Association.
In December 2006, Wallace announced that he was withdrawing his name from consideration for nomination to the Court of Appeals.[1]
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[edit] Biography
Michael Wallace was born January 1, 1951, in Biloxi, Mississippi. He received his bachelor's degree from Harvard University in 1973 and his law degree from the University of Virginia. Wallace clerked for Mississippi Supreme Court Justice Harry Walker from 1976-77 and then-Associate Supreme Court Justice William Rehnquist from 1977-78. Wallace worked for the U.S. House Republican Research Committee from 1990-81, for Trent Lott from 1980-83, for Mississippi law firms since.[2]
[edit] Civil Rights
Critics charge that Mr. Wallace has tried to undermine meaningful enforcement of the U.S. civil rights laws. He fought unsuccessfully against restoring important, widely supported voting rights protections, continued to maintain that such protections did not exist long after they were enacted, stopped legal services providers from bringing cases under the Voting Rights Act, and opposed efforts in 2006 to enforce the Voting Rights Act.[3]
[edit] Politics
In 1992, President George H.W. Bush considered Wallace for nomination to the federal bench. His name was submitted to the American Bar Association for review, and some civil rights organizations expressed their opposition. The nomination never came before Congress.[4] As chair of the Legal Services Corporation, he received significant criticism from Republicans and Democrats alike for seeking to undermine the agency. He authorized the use of LSC funds to lobby Congress for cuts in LSC’s budget and to pay right-wing lawyers to prepare a memo arguing for LSC’s abolition. Republican Senator Warren Rudman characterized Wallace's disobedience to Congress as "absolutely bad faith."[1]
[edit] External links
- Department of Justice resume
- "Four Judicial Nominees Ask to Withdraw", New York Times, Jan. 9, 2007
- Help Wanted: Qualified Judges at the New York Times
- Report on Nomination of Michael Wallace at People For the American Way
[edit] Notes
- ^ Barrett, Paul. "Under Bush, A Band of Reaganites Continues to Slash Funds for Legal Aid to the Poor", Wall Street Journal, 1989-08-29.
