Matthew Spencer Petersen (born 1970) is an American attorney who served as a member of the United States

Federal Election Commission The Federal Election Commission (FEC) is an independent regulatory agency of the United States whose purpose is to enforce campaign finance law in United States federal elections. Created in 1974 through amendments to the Federal Election Cam ...

. In 2017, he was nominated by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of P ...

to be a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

of the

United States District Court for the District of Columbia The United States District Court for the District of Columbia (in case citations, D.D.C.) is a federal district court in the District of Columbia. It also occasionally handles (jointly with the United States District Court for the District ...

. Petersen withdrew his nomination following a confrontational exchange with Senator John Kennedy during his confirmation hearing. On August 26, 2019, Petersen announced his resignation from the FEC, effective August 31. In September 2019, Petersen joined the law firm Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky as a partner where he practices political law.

Early life and education

Petersen was born in

Torrance, California Torrance is a city in the Los Angeles metropolitan area located in Los Angeles County, California, United States. The city is part of what is known as the South Bay region of the metropolitan area. Torrance has of beachfront on the Pacific O ...

and raised in Mapleton, Utah. He received an associate degree with high honors from Utah Valley State College in 1993, then went on to graduate ''magna cum laude'' with a

Bachelor of Arts Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four year ...

in philosophy from

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU, sometimes referred to colloquially as The Y) is a private research university in Provo, Utah. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is sponsored by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-d ...

in 1996. Petersen received his Juris Doctor in 1999 from the University of Virginia School of Law, where he was a member of the ''

Virginia Law Review The ''Virginia Law Review'' is a law review edited and published by students at University of Virginia School of Law. It was established on March 15, 1913, and permanently organized later that year. The stated objective of the ''Virginia Law Revie ...

''.

Career

From 1999 to 2002, he practiced election and campaign finance law at Wiley Rein in Washington, D.C. From 2002 to 2008, Petersen served in senior staff positions in both houses of Congress. From 2002 to 2005, he served as counsel to the

United States House Committee on House Administration The United States House Committee on House Administration deals with the general administration matters of the United States House of Representatives. History The Committee on House Administration was created by the Legislative Reorganization ...

. During his tenure, he was involved in crafting the

Help America Vote Act The Help America Vote Act of 2002 (), or HAVA, is a United States federal law which passed in the House 357-48 and 92-2 in the Senate and was signed into law by President Bush on October 29, 2002.United States Department of Justice Civil Rights ...

of 2002 and the House–Senate negotiations that culminated in the bill's ultimate passage. From 2005 to 2008, he served as Republican chief counsel to the

United States Senate Committee on Rules and Administration The Senate Committee on Rules and Administration, also called the Senate Rules and Administration Committee, is responsible for the rules of the United States Senate, administration of congressional buildings, and with credentials and qualificat ...

. He was chief adviser to the Republican floor manager during the Senate debate on the Honest Leadership and Open Government Act of 2007, the most recent comprehensive revision of federal lobbying and government ethics laws.

Federal Election Commission

Petersen was nominated to the

by President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

on June 12, 2008, and unanimously confirmed by the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

on June 24, 2008. He served as Chairman in 2010 and 2016. On December 18, 2018, he was elected Vice-Chair. On August 26, 2019, he announced his resignation, effective August 31. Early in Petersen's tenure, the Supreme Court of the United States held in ''

Citizens United v. FEC ''Citizens United v. Federal Election Commission'', 558 U.S. 310 (2010), was a landmark decision of the Supreme Court of the United States regarding campaign finance laws and free speech under the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. It wa ...

'' that the federal prohibition against corporations and labor unions making independent expenditures in connection with elections violated the free speech clause of the First Amendment. In the aftermath of that landmark opinion, Petersen and his FEC colleagues developed the legal framework that led to the advent of Super PACs and governed political speech by corporations and labor unions. He also helped draft more robust procedural protections for persons and groups involved in enforcement matters, audits, and advisory opinions. As a Commissioner, Petersen advocated for maintaining broad protections for internet political speech. According to Petersen, the "use of the internet as a tool for political engagement has had a democratizing effect … enabl ngspeakers with few resources to communicate to large audiences, while a seemingly infinite array of nlineresources aid the citizenry in casting informed votes." During Petersen’s time on the FEC, some campaign finance reform groups criticized FEC Republicans for not being aggressive enough in enforcing campaign spending restrictions. Others praised the Republicans for their commitment to free speech and principled decision making. On August 26, 2019, Petersen sent a letter to President Donald J. Trump announcing he would be stepping down from the FEC. In his resignation letter, Petersen said, "I have faithfully discharged my duty to enforce the law in a manner that respects free speech rights, while also fairly interpreting the relevant statutes and regulations and providing meaningful notice to those subject to FEC jurisdiction." Petersen's departure from the FEC left the agency with only three commissioners; a minimum of four commissioners is necessary for the FEC to vote on enforcement actions, regulations, and advisory opinions.

Post-FEC

On September 5, 2019, the law firm of Holtzman Vogel Josefiak Torchinsky announced that Petersen would join as a partner. Petersen’s practice focuses on campaign finance, election administration, lobbying compliance, and government ethics. Petersen continues to write about and comment on election law-related issues, including the election administration challenges caused by COVID-19, and serves on the board of the Republican National Lawyers Association.

Failed nomination to district court

On September 11, 2017, President

nominated Petersen to serve as a United States District Judge of the

, to the seat vacated by Judge

Richard W. Roberts Richard Warren Roberts (born 1953) is an inactive United States federal judge, Senior United States district judge of the United States District Court for the District of Columbia. Early life Roberts was born in New York City, New York (state), ...

, who assumed

senior status Senior status is a form of semi- retirement for United States federal judges. To qualify, a judge in the federal court system must be at least 65 years old, and the sum of the judge's age and years of service as a federal judge must be at leas ...

on March 16, 2016. The American Bar Association's Standing Committee on the Federal Judiciary unanimously rated Petersen as "Qualified". On December 13, 2017, during his confirmation hearing before the

Senate Judiciary Committee The United States Senate Committee on the Judiciary, informally the Senate Judiciary Committee, is a standing committee of 22 U.S. senators whose role is to oversee the Department of Justice (DOJ), consider executive and judicial nominations ...

that subsequently went viral, Senator

John Neely Kennedy John Neely Kennedy (born November 21, 1951) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the junior United States senator from Louisiana since 2017. He served as the Louisiana State Treasurer from 2000 to 2017. Kennedy has been a mem ...

questioned Petersen first about his relative inexperience in courtrooms and depositions and then about his knowledge of legal procedure, asking if Petersen knew what the Daubert standard was, and what a motion ''in limine'' was. He struggled to answer. In response to the questions on his experience and knowledge, he said: Petersen's answers received criticism in the press and from lawmakers. ''The New York Times'' described it as one of the "more painful Senate hearings in recent memory". Senator

Sheldon Whitehouse Sheldon Whitehouse (born October 20, 1955) is an American lawyer and politician serving as the junior United States senator from Rhode Island since 2007. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States Attorney from 1993 to 1998 ...

(D-RI) complained that, of the "basic questions of law" Senator Kennedy asked, Petersen could not "answer a single one". Legal scholar Alicia Bannon blamed Petersen's answers on "a lack of preparation and basic understanding of pretty basic legal concepts". Carrie Campbell Severino of ''

National Review ''National Review'' is an American conservative editorial magazine, focusing on news and commentary pieces on political, social, and cultural affairs. The magazine was founded by the author William F. Buckley Jr. in 1955. Its editor-in-chief ...

'' defended Petersen, saying that his time at the FEC gave him experience in trial-like procedures. Matthew Sanderson of '' The Hill'' argued that Kennedy's concerns were largely irrelevant to the D.C. District, and criticized Kennedy as "bellitl ng Petersen. Petersen withdrew his nomination on December 16, 2017. On January 3, 2018, his nomination was returned to the President under Rule XXXI, Paragraph 6 of the Standing Rules of the

References