Michael Waldman
Mr. Waldman was Director of Speechwriting for President Bill Clinton from 1995-1999, serving as Assistant to the President. He was responsible for writing or editing nearly 2,000 speeches, including four State of the Union speeches 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), teaching courses on political reform, public leadership and communications. Most recently he has been a litigator in private practice in New York. Mr. Waldman appears frequently on television and radio to discuss public policy, the presidency and the law.
Michael Waldman is a graduate of Columbia College (B.A., 1982) and New York University School of Law (J.D., 1987), where he was a member of the Law Review.
Selected Media Appearances
- Michael Waldman on Fox News, discussing potential problems at the polls (10/21/08)
- Michael Waldman on CBS Evening New, discusses voter purges (9/30/08)
- Michael Waldman on "The Verdict with Dan Abrams," MSNBC, on Rove & Testimony (7/16/08)
- Michael Waldman on "The Verdict with Dan Abrams," MSNBC, on Rove & Testimony (7/08/08)
- Michael Waldman, "First 100 Days of the Next Presidency," CSPAN (6/27/08)
- Brennan Center on DOJ Torture Demos Live with Dan Abrams, MSNBC (8/4/07)
- After the Speech, After the Fall - Michael Waldman's Response to 2007 State of the Union On the Media, WNYC-NPR (1/26/07)
- Former Speechwriters Describe State of the Union Drafting Process Newshour, PBS (1/23/07)
- Interview with Tavis Smiley Tavis Smiley, PBS (11/1/06)
Blog Posts
- Obama’s 100 Days: The Roosevelt Comparison Is Fair (05/07/09)
- A Brewing Court Battle (03/16/09)
- Making Democracy a Priority (01/23/09)
- The Age of Jackson, Revisited (12/10/08)
- End of the Anti-Government Era (12/02/08)
- Obama and The Small Donor Effect (06/20/08)
- Thrilling! But No Sequel, Please. (05/23/08)
- Crawford: What It All Means (04/30/08)
- After Spitzer, NY Reform, Take Two (03/12/08)
- Chasing the Reform Vote (02/19/08)
- Showing 10 most recent blog posts, show all
- Welcome to Our New Website (01/15/08)
- Let’s Not Miss the Chance to Change Voting Laws (07/10/07)
- Bringing Democracy to the Courts (02/24/06)
