March 2011 Annual Dinner
On March 8, 2011, over 250 FORR Founders and guests assembled for a black tie evening featuring a discussion with Former Attorney General Edwin Meese, Reagan National Security Advisor William Clark, Reagan Solicitor General Kenneth Starr, and former Reagan Associate General Counsel, SEC Chairman, US Congressman, and GW Bush SEC Chairman and Christopher Cox. There were numerous Reagan Alumni in attendance, including John Gavin, Peter Dailey, Richards Barger, Wendy Borcherdt, and others.
FORR chose March 8 as the date for its inaugural dinner to commemorate the anniversary of one of President Reagan's most important speeches, the famed "Evil Empire Speech," partially authored by Judge Clark and delivered in Orlando Florida in 1983 before the National Association of Evangelicals. Judge Kenneth Starr interviewed two men, Ed Meese and William Clark, who worked directly for the President from his first campaign for governor in 1964-1966 through their time as senior cabinet members during the presidency. The panel shared intimate details of Ronald Reagan's thoughts and actions as he led the United States and the west to victory over Soviet Communism, something thought impossible before Reagan's ascent to the presidency. Chris Cox finished the evening, reading one of President Reagan's addresses to the American people concerning our nation's need to act courageously to uphold freedom and individual liberty, for America to always remember its place as "the shiny city upon the Hill". it was an evening to remember.
Edwin Meese III
Edwin Meese III is the Ronald Reagan Distinguished Fellow in Public Policy and Chairman of the Center for Legal and Judicial Studies at the Heritage Foundation. He also is a Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution at Stanford University. A California native, Meese attended Yale University and the University of California, Berkeley. A long time Reagan advisor, he was Counselor to the President (1981-85) and Chief Policy Adviser, later serving as the 75th Attorney General of the United States (1985-1988). He was a member of the National Security Council. He helped author the best-selling book, The Heritage Guide to the Constitution (Regnery, 2005). Other books include Leadership, Ethics and Policing (Prentice Hall, 2004); Making America Safer (Heritage, 1997); and With Reagan: The Inside Story (Regnery Gateway, 1992). He and his wife, Ursula, have two grown children and reside in McLean, Virginia.
Judge William P. Clark
Judge William P. Clark became a key staffer to Governor Reagan from 1966- 73, then was appointed to the California Supreme Court (1973 to 1981). After the Presidential Election in 1980, he joined President Reagan’s cabinet, first as National Security Advisor and later as Secretary of the Interior. Judge Clark played key roles forging diplomatic relations with the Vatican, developing the Reagan Administration’s policy toward the Soviet Union (he co-authored the famous ‘Evil Empire Speech’, one of the most important addresses of the Reagan presidency), and steering the Strategic Defense Initiative — also called Star Wars — a ground-and space-based initiative that now protects the U. S. from nuclear missiles. In Time Magazine’s August 1983 cover story, Time described Judge Clark as “the second most powerful man in the White House,” while The New York Times said Clark “had more access to Reagan than anyone else.” A graduate of Stanford University, native Californian and rancher, Judge Clark retired from public service to his ranch in Paso Robles with his wife, Joan, to whom he was married for 53 years. He has five adult children.
Judge Kenneth W. Starr
Judge Kenneth W. Starr has had a distinguished career in academia, the law and public service. He is presently the fourteenth president of Baylor University. Before Baylor, he served for six years as the Duane and Kelly Roberts Dean and Professor of Law at Pepperdine, teaching constitutional law and civil procedure. Prior to academia, Judge Starr served in Washington, D.C. as Solicitor General of the United States (1989 -1993). He also served as United States Circuit Judge for the District of Columbia Circuit (1983-1989), as law clerk to Chief Justice Warren E. Burger (1975-1977) and as law clerk to Fifth Circuit Judge David W. Dyer (1973-1974). Judge Starr was appointed to serve as Independent Counsel from 1994 to 1999. He earned his B.A. from George Washington University, his M.A. from Brown University, and his J.D. from Duke University Law School. A native Texan, he lives with his wife, Alice, in Waco and together they have three children and four grandchildren