Trevor Potter (born October 24, 1955) is a lawyer, former commissioner and chairman 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 ...

. He is the Founder and President of the

Campaign Legal Center Campaign Legal Center (CLC) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) government watchdog group in the United States. CLC supports strong enforcement of United States campaign finance laws. Trevor Potter, former Republican chairman of the Federal Election Comm ...

, a nonprofit organization which works in the areas of campaign finance and elections, political communication and government ethics. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, he was the General Counsel to

John McCain John Sidney McCain III (August 29, 1936 – August 25, 2018) was an American politician and United States Navy officer who served as a United States senator from Arizona from 1987 until his death in 2018. He previously served two te ...

's two presidential campaigns. Potter is a vocal critic of unlimited corporate spending and

dark money In the politics of the United States, dark money refers to spending to influence elections where the source of the money is not disclosed to voters. In the United States, some types of nonprofit organizations may spend money on campaigns wi ...

in politics allowed by the '' Citizens United v. FEC'' ruling. He has been described by the ''American Bar Association Journal'' as "hands-down one of the top lawyers in the country on the delicate intersection of politics, law and money".

Early years and education

Potter attended Brooks School in North Andover, MA. He earned his A.B. from

Harvard University Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of highe ...

in 1978, and his

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice l ...

from

University of Virginia School of Law The University of Virginia School of Law (Virginia Law or UVA Law) is the law school of the University of Virginia, a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. It was founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson as part of his "academical v ...

in 1982.

Career

Lawyer Trevor Potter giving testimony at a hearing of the House Appropriations Committee

Potter's government experience also includes service as assistant general counsel of the United States

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

(1984–1985) and attorney with the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United Stat ...

(1982–1984). He served as General Counsel to the 2000 and 2008 Presidential campaigns of

and Deputy General Counsel to the George H. W. Bush 1988 campaign. Speaking in 2014, Potter said:

olbertwas able to show America the loopholes (or "loop-chasms" as he called them) in the laws designed to regulate coordination between candidates and supposedly "independent" groups. By having his own Super PAC and 501(c)(4), Stephen could evolve right alongside the campaigns—or often be a step ahead of them. His understanding of the possibilities inherent in the legal confusion was keen enough to discover and exploit absurd legalities before it became clear that actual candidates and political activists were doing the same thing.

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late-night talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December 18, 2014, for 1,447 episodes. The show fo ...

''s segments on "Super PACs" were recognized in 2011 with a

Peabody Award The George Foster Peabody Awards (or simply Peabody Awards or the Peabodys) program, named for the American businessman and philanthropist George Peabody, honor the most powerful, enlightening, and invigorating stories in television, radio, and ...

for parody reporting as an "innovative means of teaching American viewers about the landmark court decision". Reflecting on the experience in 2015, Potter said, "I was his lawyer for the venture, which meant I did everything from drafting a Federal Election Commission Advisory Opinion Request to accompanying Colbert to hearings. I even figured out how to make the money "disappear" from public view when the PAC was closing. (Hint: It's not that hard.) ... The final takeaway from my work with Colbert was a sense of the enormous and detrimental impact Citizens United has had on our campaigns and elections." Potter was elected to the

American Law Institute The American Law Institute (ALI) is a research and advocacy group of judges, lawyers, and legal scholars established in 1923 to promote the clarification and simplification of United States common law and its adaptation to changing social needs ...

in 2013 and serves as an Adviser on ALI's Principles of Election Law: Resolution of Election Disputes project. He serves as the Senior Advisor to

Issue One Issue One is an American nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that seeks to reduce the role of money in politics. It aims to increase public awareness of what it views as problems within the present campaign finance system, and to reduce the influ ...

Works

*Anthony Corrado (Editor), Thomas E. Mann (Editor), Daniel R. Ortiz (Editor), Trevor Potter (Editor), Frank J. Sorauf (Editor), ''Campaign Finance Reform: A Sourcebook'', Brookings Institution Press (1997), *Anthony Corrado (Editor), Thomas E. Mann (Editor), Trevor Potter (Editor), ''Inside the Campaign Finance Battle: Court Testimony on the New Reforms'', Brookings Institution Press (2003), *Anthony Corrado, Thomas E. Mann, Daniel R. Ortiz, Trevor Potter, ''The New Campaign Finance Sourcebook'', Brookings Institution Press (2005), *Trevor Potter, ''Political Activity, Lobbying Laws and Gift Rules Guide'', Thomson West (2008), *Joseph Birkenstock, Trevor Potter, ''Political Activity, Lobbying Laws and Gift Rules Guide, 2009-2010 ed.'', LegalWorks (2009), *Joseph Birkenstock, Trevor Potter, ''Political Activity, Lobbying Laws and Gift Rules Guide, 2010-2011 ed.'', LegalWorks (2010), *Joseph Birkenstock, Trevor Potter, ''Political Activity, Lobbying Laws and Gift Rules Guide, 3d, 2011-2012 ed.'', LegalWorks (2011),

References

External links

Member profile
at Caplin & Drysdale
Nonresident Senior Fellow
at the

Brookings Institution The Brookings Institution, often stylized as simply Brookings, is an American research group founded in 1916. Located on Think Tank Row in Washington, D.C., the organization conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in e ...

*
Appearances
on ''

Moyers & Company ''Moyers & Company'' was a commentary and interview television show hosted by Bill Moyers, and broadcast via syndication on public television stations in the United States. The weekly show covered current affairs affecting everyday Americans, and ...

''
Appearances
an
news articles
on ''

'' * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Potter, Trevor American lawyers Harvard College alumni Living people Members of the Federal Election Commission University of Virginia School of Law alumni 1955 births Brooks School alumni George H. W. Bush administration personnel Clinton administration personnel

Early years and education

Career

Works

See also

References

External links