Jump to content

Rachel Brand

Edit links
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Rachel Brand
Brand in September 2017
18thUnited States Associate Attorney General
In office
May 22, 2017 – February 20, 2018
PresidentDonald Trump
Preceded byTony West
Succeeded byVanita Gupta
Member of thePrivacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board
In office
August 2012 – February 2017
Nominated byBarack Obama
Preceded byFrancis X. Taylor[1]
Succeeded byJane Nitze
United States Assistant Attorney Generalfor theOffice of Legal Policy
In office
March 28, 2005 – July 9, 2007
Acting: March 28, 2005 – July 28, 2005
PresidentGeorge W. Bush
Preceded byDaniel Bryant
Succeeded byElisebeth Cook
Personal details
Born
Rachel Lee Brand

(1973-05-01)May 1, 1973(age 51)
Muskegon, Michigan,U.S.
SpouseJonathan Cohn
Children2
EducationUniversity of Minnesota Morris(BA)
Harvard University(JD)

Rachel Lee Brand(born May 1, 1973) is an American lawyer, academic, and former government official. She served as theUnited States Associate Attorney Generalfrom May 22, 2017, until February 20, 2018, when she resigned to take a job as head of globalcorporate governanceatWalmart.[2][3]Brand was the first woman to serve as Associate Attorney General.[4]She also served as Assistant Attorney General for theOffice of Legal Policyin theGeorge W. Bushadministration and was appointed by PresidentBarack Obamato serve on thePrivacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board.Prior to becoming Associate Attorney General, Brand was an associate professor atAntonin Scalia Law School.[5][6]

Early life and education

[edit]

Brand was born inMuskegon, Michigan,and raised inPella, Iowa,[7][8][4]where she attended Pella Christian High School.[9]Brand studied at theUniversity of Minnesota Morrisfrom 1991 to 1995, graduating with high distinction and honors with aBachelor of Artsinpolitical science.

She then attendedHarvard Law School,where she was deputy editor-in-chief of theHarvard Journal of Law and Public Policy.She graduated in 1998 with aJ.D.cum laude.[10]After graduating, Brand clerked for Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court JusticeCharles Friedin 1998–1999 and for U.S. Supreme Court JusticeAnthony Kennedyin 2002–2003.[11]In 1999, she also served as General Counsel forElizabeth Dole's presidential exploratory committee.[10]From 1999 to 2000, Brand worked at the firmCooper, Carvin, & Rosenthal,now known as Cooper & Kirk.[12]

Career

[edit]

Bush administration (2000–2007)

[edit]
Brand in 2005

Brand was part of the legal team representingGeorge W. Bushduring the2000 United States presidential election recount in Florida,[13]and also served briefly as associate counsel in Bush's transition team.[10]Brand later served as President Bush's assistant counsel and associate counsel.[14][15]Beginning in 2003,[10]she served as an Assistant Attorney General for the Office of Legal Policy in theGeorge W. Bush administrationwhere she helped shepherd the Supreme Court nominations ofJohn RobertsandSamuel Alito.[13]Brand's portfolio also included shaping the administration's position onreauthorization of the Patriot Act,[16]in which capacity she testified before theUnited States Senate Committee on the Judiciaryon the benefits of usingadministrative subpoenasin terrorism investigations.[17]

During her tenure at the Justice Department, Brand was tangentially involved in thecontroversysurrounding Attorney GeneralAlberto Gonzales's dismissal of several United States Attorneys. She was floated by the department's leadership as a top candidate to replaceMargaret Chiara,who was ousted as part of the purge.[18]Brand ultimately declined the position, however, and resigned from the Department of Justice in June 2007.[19]

After leaving the Justice Department, Brand worked for three years atWilmerHale.[4]In 2008,John McCain,then acandidate for the Republican Party's presidential nomination,named Brand to his Justice Advisory Committee, which would have recommended judicial nominees to McCain were he elected.[20]

Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board (2012–2017)

[edit]

In 2012, Brand was appointed by PresidentBarack Obamato serve on thePrivacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board(PCLOB).[21]She was confirmed on August 2, 2012 to a term ending January 29, 2017.[22]

Brand dissented from several recommendations included in the PCLOB's 2014 report onNSA's bulk metadata collection program undersection 215of theUSA PATRIOT Act.She declined to join in the Board's view that the program was illegal as a statutory matter and argued that, in policy terms, it struck a justifiable balance between privacy and national security and, as such, should not be discontinued.[23]The Board, for its part, had recommended the program's termination.[24]

Associate Attorney General (2017–2018)

[edit]
Brand being sworn in asUnited States Associate Attorney Generalby Attorney GeneralJeff Sessionsin May 2017

On February 1, 2017, PresidentDonald TrumpnominatedBrand to beUnited States Associate Attorney General.[25]Her appointment was confirmed 52–46 by theU.S. Senateon May 18, 2017,[26]and she was sworn in on May 22, 2017.

The reauthorization of the702 section of the surveillance lawwas a job assignment of the subject according to CNN.[27]Combating human trafficking was one of Brand's stated priorities as Associate Attorney General.[28][29]At the Department of Justice, Brand authored a memorandum entitled "Limiting Use of Agency Guidance Documents In Affirmative Civil Enforcement Cases," which was called the "Brand memo". The document forbade DOJ litigators from bringing enforcement actions based on unenforceable guidance documents.[30]

On February 9, 2018,The New York Timesreported that Brand, along with her assistant Currie Gunn, had resigned from the Justice Department.The New York Timesreported that Brand oversaw "a wide swath of the Justice Department" and helped lead the department's effort to extend Section 702 of theFISA Amendments Actthat "authorizes theNational Security Agency's warrantless surveillance program. "[3][31]

Walmart

[edit]

On February 12, 2018,NBC Newsreported that Brand quit the Justice Department over fear she might be asked to oversee the Russia probe and had taken a position withWalmartas executive vice president of global governance and corporate secretary.[2][32]As executive vice president of global governance, chief legal officer, and corporate secretary, Brand is in charge of the legal department, global ethics, compliance, and investigations.[29][33]

Other professional activities

[edit]

Brand has served as Chief Counsel for Regulatory Litigation at theU.S. Chamber of Commerce.[34]As Chief Counsel with the Chamber, Brand was on the brief for respondent Noel Canning in the landmarkSupreme CourtdecisionNLRB v. Noel Canning.[35]

Brand formerly served as the chairman of theFederalist Society's Litigation Practice Group and as co-chair of theAmerican Bar AssociationAdministrative Law Section's Government Information and Right to Privacy Committee.[36]

Policy positions

[edit]
Brand speaking on the Department of Justice's efforts to combathuman traffickingin February 2018

In 2015, Brand expressed support for revised guidelines issued byDirector of National IntelligenceJames Clapper,arguing that they represented a welcome shift in theintelligence communityaway from what she termed its historical "reflexive secrecy."[37]She has also suggested that theNational Security Agencyought to develop a set of guidelines beyond theFair Information Practice Principles,which she alleges are insufficient in the intelligence-gathering context, to govern its own approach to privacy.[38]

In a 2008 publication forThe Heritage Foundation,Brand argued against, and proposed various solutions to, what she termed the "over-federalization"ofcriminal law in the United States.[39]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^"Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status"(PDF).Garrett Hatch. August 27, 2012.RetrievedDecember 30,2018.
  2. ^abBryan, Logan (February 9, 2018)."The person next in line to oversee the Mueller investigation suddenly stepped down".Business Insider.RetrievedSeptember 4,2018.
  3. ^abKatie Benner (February 9, 2018)."No. 3 Official at the Justice Department Is Stepping Down".The New York Times.Archivedfrom the original on February 9, 2018.RetrievedFebruary 9,2018.
  4. ^abcHorwitz, Sari (May 28, 2017)."Former Bush official Rachel Brand takes over No. 3 position at Justice Dept".Washington Post.Archivedfrom the original on June 1, 2017.RetrievedJune 7,2017.
  5. ^washingtonpost:Third-highest ranking official at the Justice Department stepping down
  6. ^http:// justice.gov:Associate Attorney General to Leave Justice Department for Private Sector
  7. ^"United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary Questionnaire for Nominees to Privacy and Civil Liberties Board"(PDF).U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee.Archived(PDF)from the original on May 14, 2017.RetrievedJune 16,2017.
  8. ^Henderson, O. Kay (May 18, 2017)."Iowa native now #3 at U.S. Department of Justice".Radio Iowa.Archivedfrom the original on May 18, 2017.RetrievedJune 16,2017.
  9. ^Ernst, Joni(March 7, 2017).Introduction of Rachel Brand(Speech). Hearing on Rod Rosenstein and Rachel Brand Nominations before the Senate Judiciary Committee. Washington, DC.Archivedfrom the original on September 2, 2017.
  10. ^abcdBrand, Rachel L. (May 12, 2005).Biographical Information (Public)(PDF)(Speech). Confirmation Hearing on the Nominations of Rachel L. Brand, Alice S. Fisher, and Regina B. Schofield to be Assistant Attorneys General (Hearing before the Committee on the Judiciary, United States Senate, 109th Congress, 1st Session). Washington, DC: Government Printing Office.Archived(PDF)from the original on December 21, 2016.RetrievedAugust 3,2017.
  11. ^"Rachel Brand Former Assistant Attorney General, Office of Legal Policy United States Department of Justice".The White House.Archivedfrom the original on February 16, 2017.RetrievedFebruary 15,2017.
  12. ^Milbank, Dana (January 30, 2001)."White House Counsel Office Now Full of Clinton Legal Foes".The Washington Post.Archivedfrom the original on July 31, 2017.RetrievedMay 18,2017.
  13. ^abShenon, Philip (June 16, 2017)."The Obscure Lawyer Who Might Become the Most Powerful Woman in Washington".Politico.Archivedfrom the original on June 30, 2017.RetrievedJune 19,2017.
  14. ^Milbank, Dana (January 30, 2001)."White House Counsel Office Now Full of Clinton Legal Foes".The Washington Post.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
  15. ^"Scarramucci and other alumni among Trump's recent appointees".Harvard Law Today.July 26, 2017.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
  16. ^Goldstein, Amy (June 30, 2007)."Bush Is Told to Justify Executive Privilege".The Washington Post.Archivedfrom the original on August 4, 2017.RetrievedAugust 4,2017.
  17. ^Brand, Rachel (June 22, 2004).Testimony of Rachel Brand(PDF)(Speech). Hearing before the United States Senate Judiciary Committee, Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology and Homeland Security: "Tools to Fight Terrorism: Subpoena Authority and Pretrial Detention of Terrorists". Washington, DC.Archived(PDF)from the original on February 7, 2017.RetrievedAugust 4,2017.
  18. ^Shane, Scott (April 14, 2007)."Political Résumé, Not Court, Stood Out for a Contender".The New York Times.Archivedfrom the original on August 4, 2017.RetrievedAugust 3,2017.
  19. ^"Justice Department Official Resigns".The New York Times.Associated Press. June 30, 2007.Archivedfrom the original on August 4, 2017.RetrievedAugust 3,2017.
  20. ^Eilperin, Juliet (May 7, 2009)."McCain Says He Would Put Conservatives on Supreme Court".The Washington Post.Archived fromthe originalon May 7, 2008.RetrievedAugust 4,2017.
  21. ^Hendrickson, Dan (February 1, 2017)."Iowan Nominated To Serve In Trump Justice Department".NBC 13.Archivedfrom the original on February 16, 2017.RetrievedFebruary 15,2017.
  22. ^Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board(January 23, 2014).Report on the Telephone Records Program Conducted under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act and on the Operations of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court(PDF)(Report). p. 3, fn. 12.Archived(PDF)from the original on August 28, 2017.RetrievedAugust 4,2017.{{cite report}}:|author=has generic name (help)
  23. ^Brand, Rachel (January 23, 2014)."Annex A: Separate Statement by Board Member Rachel Brand"(PDF).Report on the Telephone Records Program Conducted under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act and on the Operations of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court (Report). pp. 209–13.Archived(PDF)from the original on August 28, 2017.RetrievedAugust 4,2017.
  24. ^Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board(January 23, 2014).Report on the Telephone Records Program Conducted under Section 215 of the USA PATRIOT Act and on the Operations of the Foreign Intelligence Surveillance Court(PDF)(Report). pp. 16–17.Archived(PDF)from the original on August 28, 2017.RetrievedAugust 4,2017.{{cite report}}:|author=has generic name (help)
  25. ^Goetz, Ethan (February 8, 2017)."Locals, friends comment on Rachel Brand nomination for associate attorney general".Oskaloosa Herald.The Pella Chronicle.RetrievedFebruary 15,2017.
  26. ^Cohen, Kelly (May 18, 2017)."Senate confirms Rachel Brand as associate attorney general".Washington Examiner.Archivedfrom the original on May 18, 2017.RetrievedMay 18,2017.
  27. ^Jarrett, Laura. (January 19, 2018). "Meet the Justice Department's FISA closer."CNN websiteArchivedFebruary 4, 2018, at theWayback Machine
  28. ^Gurman, Sadie (February 9, 2018)."No. 3 Justice Department official Rachel Brand stepping down amid turmoil".The Associated Press.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
  29. ^abViswanatha, Aruna; Wilber, Del Quentin (February 9, 2018)."Rachel Brand Stepping Down as Justice Department's No. 3".The Wall Street Journal.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
  30. ^"DOJ Updates its Justice Manual to Include Section Limiting Use of Guidance Documents in Litigation".National Law Review.January 7, 2019.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
  31. ^"Opinion | The government's ability to fight terrorism is in peril".Washington Post.RetrievedAugust 5,2018.
  32. ^"Top DOJ official quit partly over fear she might be asked to oversee Russia probe".NBC News.RetrievedAugust 5,2018.
  33. ^Reisinger, Sue (December 14, 2018)."No. 3 Justice Department official Rachel Brand stepping down amid turmoil".Law.RetrievedMay 3,2019.
  34. ^"U.S. Chamber's Litigation Center Names Rachel Brand Chief Counsel for Regulatory Litigation and Kate Comerford Todd Chief Counsel for Appellate Litigation".U.S. Chamber of Commerce.Archivedfrom the original on March 29, 2017.RetrievedMarch 28,2017.
  35. ^NLRB v. Noel Canning,docket no. 12-1281 (Supreme Court of the United States).Brief of Respondent Noel CanningArchivedAugust 4, 2017, at theWayback Machine.
  36. ^"Rachel Brand".Scalia Law School. Archived fromthe originalon February 16, 2017.RetrievedMay 18,2017.
  37. ^Brand, Rachel (November 2, 2015)."Transparency in the Intelligence Community".Lawfare.Archivedfrom the original on January 13, 2024.RetrievedAugust 3,2017.
  38. ^Brand, Rachel (November 25, 2014)."Memo to NSA: Stop Saying You Apply the FIPPs".Lawfare.Archivedfrom the original on January 13, 2024.RetrievedAugust 3,2017.
  39. ^Brand, Rachel (August 29, 2008)."Making It a Federal Case: An Inside View of the Pressures to Federalize Crime".Legal Memorandum(30): 1.Archivedfrom the original on August 4, 2017.RetrievedAugust 3,2017.
[edit]
Legal offices
Preceded by
Daniel Bryant
 United States Assistant Attorney Generalfor theOffice of Legal Policy
2005–2007 		Succeeded by
Elisebeth Cook
Preceded by United States Associate Attorney General
2017–2018 		Succeeded by
Government offices
Preceded by Member of thePrivacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board
2012–2017 		Succeeded by
Jane Nitze
  1. ^"Privacy and Civil Liberties Oversight Board: New Independent Agency Status"(PDF).Garrett Hatch. August 27, 2012.RetrievedDecember 30,2018.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Rachel_Brand&oldid=1201856164"