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Title: Edwin Meese papers
Date (inclusive): 1951-1991
Creator:
Meese, Edwin.
Collection Number: 91005
Repository:
Hoover Institution Archives
Stanford, California 94305-6010
Collection Size:
771 manuscript boxes, 1 oversize box, 1 card file box, 1 envelope, 4 phonotape cassettes, 2 motion picture film reels
(325 linear feet)
Abstract: Speeches, correspondence, memoranda, reports, schedules, press releases, legal documents, printed matter, photographs, and
sound recordings related to California politics and administration of the California state government during the governorship
of Ronald Reagan; and to American domestic policy, Republican Party politics, and federal administration of justice during
the presidency of Ronald Reagan.
Collection is open for research.
The Hoover Institution Archives only allows access to
copies of audiovisual items. To listen to sound recordings or to view videos or films during your visit, please contact the Archives
at least two working days before your arrival. We will then advise you of the accessibility of the material you wish to see
or hear. Please note that not all audiovisual material is immediately accessible.
For copyright status, please contact the Hoover Institution Archives.
[Identification of item], Edwin Meese papers, [Box number], Hoover Institution Archives.
Materials were acquired by the Hoover Institution Archives in 1991 and in an increment in 1995.
Materials may have been added to the collection since this finding aid was prepared. To determine if this has occurred, find
the collection in Stanford University's online catalog at
http://searchworks.stanford.edu/ . Materials have been added to the collection if the number of boxes listed in the online catalog is larger than the number
of boxes listed in this finding aid.
Ronald Reagan subject collection, Hoover Institution Archives
Citizens for Reagan records, Hoover Institution Archives
Governor and the Students videotape series, Hoover Institution Archives
| 1931, Dec. 2 | Born, Oakland, California |
| 1954-1955 | Served in the United States Army |
| 1953 | A.B. in public administration, Yale University |
| 1958 | J.D., University of California, Berkeley |
| Married Ursula Herrick | |
| 1959-1967 | Deputy district attorney, Alameda County, California |
| 1967-1968 | Legal affairs secretary (previously called secretary on clemency and extradition) to Governor Reagan |
| 1969-1974 | Executive assistant, chief of staff to Governor Reagan, Sacramento, California |
| 1975-1976 | Vice president, administration, Rohr Industries, Chula Vista, California |
| 1976-1980 | Attorney at law |
| 1977-1978 | Director, Center for Criminal Justice Policy andd Management, University of California, San Diego |
| 1977-1981 | Professor of law, University of California, San Diego |
| 1980 | Chief of staff and senior issues advisor, Ronald Reagan Presidential Campaign |
| 1981-1985 | Counselor to President Reagan, Washington, D.C. |
| Member of President Reagan's Cabinet | |
| Member of the National Security Council | |
| 1983 | Recipient, Distinguished Public Service Award |
| 1985 February-1988 August | U.S. attorney general, Washington, D.C. |
| 1988- | Distinguished visiting fellow, Hoover Institution, Stanford University, California |
| Ronald Reagan chair in public policy, The Heritage Foundation | |
| 1992 | Author, With Reagan: The Inside Story |
| 1996 | President, Council for National Policy |
| 1996-2004 | Member, Board of Visitors, George Mason University |
| 1997 | Author, Making America Safer |
| 2001-2013 | Chairman, Center for Legal and Judicial Studies, Heritage Foundation |
| 2004 | Author, Leadership, Ethics and Policing |
| 2006 | Member, Iraq Study Group |
| 2008 | Named honorary Reagan fellow of Eureka College, Illinois |
| 2012 | Recipient, Bradley Prize |
Scope and Content of Collection
The collection was acquired by the Hoover Institution Archives in 1991 and arranged into seven groups, including a biographical
file, speeches and writings, and materials from Meese's time serving President Reagan at the White House and his work as attorney
general in the Department of Justice. The majority of the collection was received as an increment to this original accession.
Although the incremental materials have not been arranged, the materials are divided into two major groups based on Meese's
service to Ronald Reagan during Reagan's terms as governor of California and president of the United States. The index to
major groups can serve as a guide to the incremental materials in the collection.
The Edwin Meese papers document Meese's role in the presidential and gubernatorial administrations of Ronald Reagan. The collection
contains speeches, correspondence, memoranda, reports, schedules, press releases, legal documents, printed matter, photographs,
and sound recordings related to California politics and administration of the California state government during the governorship
of Ronald Reagan; and to American domestic policy, Republican Party politics, and federal administration of justice during
the presidency of Ronald Reagan.
Meese began his work for Ronald Reagan during Reagan's two terms as governor of California. In his book
With Reagan, Meese notes that he was recommended to the governor based on his experience with law enforcement. From 1967 to 1968, Meese
served as legal affairs secretary, tasked with resolving issues of extraditions, prisons, and capital punishment, as well
as acting as a liaison to legal, judicial, and law enforcement departments. From 1969 to 1974, Meese was executive assistant
and chief of staff, directing the governor's executive office and serving on the cabinet. In this role, Meese also had responsibilities
concerning the National Guard, the Office of Emergency Services, and the Office of Criminal Justice Planning. The
Gubernatorial Administration of Ronald Reagan file documents Meese's work during this period through correspondence, clippings, memoranda, reports, schedules, speeches, and
court documents.
During Reagan's campaign for the presidency in 1980, Meese served as chief of staff and senior issues advisor. In order to
devote time to the campaign, Meese spent less time teaching as a professor of law at UC San Diego and gave up his duties managing
the Center for Criminal Justice Policy and Management. After Reagan was elected, Meese served as a counselor to the president
and as a member of his cabinet.
Boxes 566 to 582 document the Iran-Contra Affair, a scandal involving the sale of arms to Iran in exchange for Iran's help
in releasing American hostages. In November 1986, after news of the scandal became public, Meese announced that some of the
money gained from selling arms to Iran had been used to fund the Contras in Nicaragua. The collection includes clippings,
correspondence, memoranda, testimony of Meese and others, phone logs, and chronologies related to the Iran-Contra Affair.
From February 1985 to August 1988, Edwin Meese held the position of attorney general of the United States. In this role, Meese
influenced policy initiatives concerning drug abuse, civil rights, and criminal procedure, in addition to creating a national
marijuana eradication program. His accomplishments included prevention and control of crime, improvement of the criminal justice
system, protection of civil rights, promotion of economic growth, improvement of the legal system, government financial integrity,
and the preservation of constitutional values. The
Presidential Administration of Ronald Reagan file documents Meese's work during Ronald Reagan's presidency from 1981-1988, including his efforts as the 75th attorney general
of the United States.
Source: Meese, Edwin, III.
With Reagan: The Inside Story. New York: Regnery Gateway, 1992.
Initial accession, boxes 1-127, arranged in seven groups. Incremental materials, boxes 128-773, ordered as acquired. Original
order and titles retained. See index to major groups for content.
| Box Nos. | Groups |
|---|---|
| 128-554, 772-773 film shelf | Gubernatorial Administration of Ronald Reagan file, 1951-1974. Contains correspondence, clippings, memoranda, reports, schedules, and court documents related to Meese's role during Ronald Reagan's terms as governor of California. |
| 349-353, 364-367 | Agriculture and Services Agency |
| 481-487 | Appointments to government positions |
| 312-335 | Budget |
| 370-378 | Business and Transportation Agency |
| 160-170 | California Council on Criminal Justice (CCCJ) |
| 456-480 | Clippings |
| 191-193 | Community and minority relations |
| 288-300 | Conference file |
| 144-149, 154-155, 501-505, 529 | Correspondence and memoranda |
| 390-395 | Department of Corrections |
| 193-201, 487-494 | Education |
| 176-190 | Emergencies and disaster planning |
| 440-446 | Energy |
| 424-439 | Environment |
| 378-387, 552 | Health and Welfare Agency |
| 494-497 | Intelligence |
| 206-217, 247-251, 300-311 | Intergovernmental management |
| 217-240, 264-271 | Legal affairs, legislation, and crime |
| 240-247, 259 | Military |
| 395-408 | Office of Economic Opportunity |
| 170-174 | Omnibus Crime Control and Safe Streets Act |
| 771 | Photographs |
| 255-261, 509-511 | Schedules of Reagan and Meese |
| 773 | Sound recordings |
| 511-515 | Speeches and speaking engagements of Meese |
| 280-286 | Speeches of Ronald Reagan |
| 357-364 | State employees |
| 230-236, 488-490 | Student radicalism, activism, and unrest |
| 338-348 | Tax reform |
| 447-449 | Water |
| 409-418 | Welfare |
| 554-771 | Presidential Administration of Ronald Reagan file, 1980-1991. Contains correspondence, clippings, memoranda, reports, schedules, and court documents related to Meese's role during Ronald Reagan's presidency, including Meese's service as attorney general from 1985 to 1988. See also boxes 1-127. |
| 563-566, 608-627, 644-658, 693-701, 736-769 | Alphabetical file |
| 627-629 | Chronological file |
| 710-716 | Clippings on Iran |
| 602, 690-692, 708 | Correspondence |
| 585-596 | Drug prevention |
| 566-581 | Iran-Contra Affair |
| 686-689 | Republican National Committee |
| 729-736 | Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation |
| 554-556, 559-561, 582-584, 599-600, 603-608 | Schedules of Reagan and Meese |
| 653-658 | Speeches and travel file |
Subjects and Indexing Terms
Reagan, Ronald.
Republican Party (U.S. : 1854- )
United States. Dept. of Justice.
Audiotapes.
California--Politics and government--1951-
Justice, Administration of--United States.
United States--Politics and government--1981-1989.