Justice for Lani Guinier
When Bernard Kerik asserted he asked that his nomination for Secretary of Homeland Security be withdrawn because of a "nanny problem," news reports about other failed nominees erroneously included Lani Guinier. Examples include Jon Stewart on Comedy Central (see clip here, posted 12/14, scroll down).
Lani Guinier absolutely DID NOT have a "nanny problem"! She was too liberal or something for Clinton, too smart and confident would be my diagnosis, but she did ABSOLUTELY NOTHING WRONG. Below is a letter Lani wrote than ran in yesterday's Washington Post, followed by the Washington Post's correction that also was published yesterday:
To Whom It May Concern:
I have been committed since 1993 to correcting the public's unfortunate confusion about my ideas. It has been an uphill battle, more so now because I have to struggle to correct the media's confusion about its role in the story.
The Clinton White House withdrew my nomination in 1993 to be Assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights in response to controversy about my academic writings on democracy. The controversy was fueled by a media firestorm that reported many of my ideas -- and me -- out of context. I was disheartened to read that some reporters on your paper are now writing a revisionist history that lets the media off the hook in 1993 and instead asserts -- inaccurately -- that my nomination was withdrawn because of concerns about domestic help.
Those who are interested in my ideas about democracy, which got me into so much trouble in 1993, might want to read two books I authored explaining those events: The Tyranny of the Majority (Free Press: 1994) and Lift Every Voice: Turning a Civil Rights Setback into a New Vision of Social Justice (Simon and Schuster: 1998).
Sincerely,
Lani Guinier
Cambridge, MA 02138
Here is the actual text of the Post's correction:
Correction
A Dec. 12 article incorrectly said that Lani Guinier's nomination to head the Justice Department's civil rights division under President Bill Clinton was withdrawn because of a "nanny problem." There was no such problem, and the Clinton White House withdrew the nomination because of controversy over Guinier's legal writings
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