Edwin Meese
Ed Meese | |
|---|---|
 Official portrait, c. 1986 | |
| 75th United States Attorney General | |
| In office February 25, 1985 – August 12, 1988 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Deputy | Carol E. Dinkins D. Lowell Jensen Arnold Burns Harold G. Christensen |
| Preceded by | William French Smith |
| Succeeded by | Dick Thornburgh |
| Counselor to the President | |
| In office January 20, 1981 – February 25, 1985 | |
| President | Ronald Reagan |
| Preceded by | Robert T. Hartmann John Otho Marsh Jr. (1977) |
| Succeeded by | Clayton Yeutter (1992) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Edwin Meese III December 2, 1931 Oakland, California, U.S. |
| Party | Republican |
| Spouse |
Ursula Herrick (m. 1959) |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Yale University (BA) University of California, Berkeley (LLB) |
Awards | Presidential Medal of Freedom (2019) |
| Military service | |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
Years of service | 1953–1984 |
| Rank | Colonel |
| Unit | Field Artillery Branch |
Edwin Meese III (born December 2, 1931) is an American attorney, law professor, author who served as 75th United States attorney general from 1985 until 1988. A member of the Republican Party, Meese served in the Ronald Reagan administration including as counselor to the president (1981–1985), on his transition team (1980–81), and during Reagan's governorship of California (1967–1974).
Following the 1980 presidential election, Reagan considered him for the White House chief of staff position, but James Baker was chosen instead. Meese was eventually appointed and confirmed as the attorney general in 1985, a position he held until resigning in 1988 amidst the Wedtech scandal.
Previously, Meese was a member of the board of trustees of the conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation until he left in 2025 as part of a high-profile series of departures following Kevin Roberts becoming president of the organization. Meese formerly was a fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. He is a member of the national advisory board of the Center for Urban Renewal and Education and a member of the board of directors of the Federalist Society. He has served on the board of Cornerstone closed-end funds.