Benjamin L. Ginsberg (born c. 1952) is an American lawyer. He is most well known for his work representing the
Republican Party and its political campaigns, candidates, members of
Congress
A congress is a formal meeting of the representatives of different countries, constituent states, organizations, trade unions, political parties, or other groups. The term originated in Late Middle English to denote an encounter (meeting of a ...
and state legislatures and governors, as well as corporations, trade associations, businesses, and individuals participating in the political process.
Before his August 2020 retirement, he was a partner at
Jones Day
Jones Day is an American multinational law firm. As of 2021, it was the eighth largest law firm in the U.S. and the 13th highest grossing law firm in the world. Originally headquartered in Cleveland, Ohio, Jones Day ranks first in both M&A le ...
.
Prior to that, he worked at
Patton Boggs
Squire Patton Boggs is an international law firm with 42 offices in 20 countries. It was formed in 2014 by the merger of multinational law firm Squire Sanders with Washington, D.C. based Patton Boggs. It is one of the 30 largest law firms in the ...
, LLP.
[Profile of Benjamin Ginsberg]
, Patton Boggs LLP, retrieved December 22, 2007[US Lobby Registration & Reporting Disclosures]
U.S. Senate Office of Public Records, retrieved January 22, 2008.
Early life, education and journalism work
Ginsberg was raised in a
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
family and received his bachelor's degree from the
University of Pennsylvania
The University of Pennsylvania (also known as Penn or UPenn) is a private research university in Philadelphia. It is the fourth-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and is ranked among the highest-regarded universitie ...
in 1974.
[ While at Penn, he was involved in the school's newspaper, '']The Daily Pennsylvanian
''The Daily Pennsylvanian, Inc.'' is the independent student media organization of the University of Pennsylvania. The DP, Inc. publishes The Daily Pennsylvanian newspaper, 34th Street Magazine, and Under the Button, as well as five newslette ...
'', where he served as a reporter (1970–72), contributing editor (1972) and editor-in-chief (1973).
After college he spent five years as a newspaper reporter for ''The Boston Globe
''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'', ''Philadelphia Bulletin
The ''Philadelphia Bulletin'' was a daily evening newspaper published from 1847 to 1982 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was the largest circulation newspaper in Philadelphia for 76 years and was once the largest evening newspaper in the United ...
'', ''The Berkshire Eagle
''The Berkshire Eagle'' is an American daily newspaper published in Pittsfield, Massachusetts, and covering all of Berkshire County, as well as four New York communities near Pittsfield. It is considered a newspaper of record for Berkshire Cou ...
'', and ''The Press-Enterprise
''The Press-Enterprise'' is a paid daily newspaper published by Digital First Media that serves the Inland Empire in Southern California. Headquartered in downtown Riverside, California, it is the primary newspaper for Riverside County, with he ...
''.[
Ginsburg received 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 law ...
from Georgetown University
Georgetown University is a private university, private research university in the Georgetown (Washington, D.C.), Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Founded by Bishop John Carroll (archbishop of Baltimore), John Carroll in 1789 as Georg ...
in 1982. While in law school, he worked in the Capitol Hill
Capitol Hill, in addition to being a metonym for the United States Congress, is the largest historic residential neighborhood in Washington, D.C., stretching easterly in front of the United States Capitol along wide avenues. It is one of the ...
office of Representative George Brown Jr.
George Edward Brown Jr. (March 6, 1920 – July 15, 1999) was an American Democratic politician from California. He represented suburban portions of Los Angeles County in the United States House of Representatives from 1963 to 1971 and parts of ...
(D-CA).[
]
Legal career
Ginsberg joined Patton Boggs
Squire Patton Boggs is an international law firm with 42 offices in 20 countries. It was formed in 2014 by the merger of multinational law firm Squire Sanders with Washington, D.C. based Patton Boggs. It is one of the 30 largest law firms in the ...
in 1993 after serving for eight years as counsel to the Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
, the National Republican Senatorial Committee, and the National Republican Congressional Committee.
In the 2000 and 2004 election cycles, Ginsberg served as national counsel to the Bush-Cheney presidential campaign.[ In 2000, he played a central role in the ]Florida recount
The 2000 United States presidential election recount in Florida was a period of vote recounting in Florida that occurred during the weeks after Election Day in the 2000 United States presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gor ...
.[ He also represents the campaigns and leadership PACs of numerous members of the Senate and House, as well as the ]Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in fu ...
, National Republican Senatorial Committee
The National Republican Senate Committee (NRSC) is the Republican Hill committee for the United States Senate, working to elect Republicans to that body. The NRSC was founded in 1916 as the Republican Senatorial Campaign Committee. It was reorgan ...
and National Republican Congressional Committee
The National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is the Republican Hill committee which works to elect Republicans to the United States House of Representatives.
The NRCC was formed in 1866, when the Republican caucuses of the House and S ...
.[ He serves as counsel to the ]Republican Governors Association
The Republican Governors Association (RGA) is a Washington, D.C.-based 527 organization founded in 1961, consisting of U.S. state and territorial Republican governors. The Republican Governors Association is dedicated to one primary objective: ele ...
and has wide experience on the state legislative level from directing Republican redistricting efforts nationwide following the 1990 Census and being actively engaged in the 2001-2002 round of redistricting.[ In ]Jay Roach
Mathew Jay Roach (born June 14, 1957) is an American filmmaker. He is best known for directing the ''Austin Powers'' film series, '' Meet the Parents'', ''Dinner for Schmucks'', '' The Campaign'', '' Trumbo'', and '' Bombshell''.
Roach also ea ...
's ''Recount
An election recount is a repeat tabulation of votes cast in an election that is used to determine the correctness of an initial count. Recounts will often take place if the initial vote tally during an election is extremely close. Election reco ...
'' (about the 2000 election), Ginsberg is played by Bob Balaban
Robert Elmer Balaban (born August 16, 1945) is an American actor, author, comedian, director and producer. He was one of the producers nominated for the Academy Award for Best Picture for ''Gosford Park'' (2001), in which he also appeared.
Balab ...
.
In 2004, Ginsberg gave legal advice to the controversial 527 Group
A 527 organization or 527 group is a type of U.S. tax-exempt organization organized under Section 527 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code (). A 527 group is created primarily to influence the selection, nomination, election, appointment or defeat ...
Swift Boat Veterans for Truth. Though his simultaneous activities with the "Swifties" and the 2004 Bush Campaign could be considered questionable, his activities were not illegal. Nonetheless, Ginsberg resigned as legal counsel from the Bush Campaign after his position was made public.
Ginsberg appears frequently on television commenting on law and politics.[ He is an ]MSNBC
MSNBC (originally the Microsoft National Broadcasting Company) is an American news-based pay television cable channel. It is owned by NBCUniversala subsidiary of Comcast. Headquartered in New York City, it provides news coverage and political ...
political analyst. He also sits on the Advisory Committee of the Election Law Program at William & Mary Law School
The William & Mary Law School, known historically as the Marshall-Wythe School of Law, is the professional graduate law school of the College of William & Mary.
Located in Williamsburg, Virginia, the school is the oldest extant law school in th ...
.
He is a former Resident Fellow at the Harvard Institute of Politics
The Institute of Politics (IOP) is an institute of Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University that was created to serve as a living memorial to President John F. Kennedy, as well as to inspire Harvard undergraduates to consider careers in politi ...
at Harvard Kennedy School
The Harvard Kennedy School (HKS), officially the John F. Kennedy School of Government, is the school of public policy and government of Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The school offers master's degrees in public policy, public ...
.[
In November 2011, Ginsberg was included on '']The New Republic
''The New Republic'' is an American magazine of commentary on politics, contemporary culture, and the arts. Founded in 1914 by several leaders of the progressive movement, it attempted to find a balance between "a liberalism centered in hum ...
''s list of Washington's most powerful, least famous people.
Ginsberg served as National Counsel to Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney (born March 12, 1947) is an American politician, businessman, and lawyer serving as the junior United States senator from Utah since January 2019, succeeding Orrin Hatch. He served as the 70th governor of Massachusetts f ...
's Presidential campaign in 2008[ and in 2012. In August 2012, '']Politico
''Politico'' (stylized in all caps), known originally as ''The Politico'', is an American, German-owned political journalism newspaper company based in Arlington County, Virginia, that covers politics and policy in the United States and intern ...
'' reported that "Ginsberg has handled the campaign's most sensitive legal matters... and would be the most obvious choice for White House counsel
The White House counsel is a senior staff appointee of the president of the United States whose role is to advise the president on all legal issues concerning the president and their administration. The White House counsel also oversees the Of ...
" in a potential Romney cabinet
Cabinet or The Cabinet may refer to:
Furniture
* Cabinetry, a box-shaped piece of furniture with doors and/or drawers
* Display cabinet, a piece of furniture with one or more transparent glass sheets or transparent polycarbonate sheets
* Filing ...
.
In 2013, Ginsberg was a signatory to an ''amicus curiae
An ''amicus curiae'' (; ) is an individual or organization who is not a party to a legal case, but who is permitted to assist a court by offering information, expertise, or insight that has a bearing on the issues in the case. The decision on ...
'' brief submitted to the Supreme Court in support of same-sex marriage
Same-sex marriage, also known as gay marriage, is the marriage of two people of the same Legal sex and gender, sex or gender. marriage between same-sex couples is legally performed and recognized in 33 countries, with the most recent being ...
during the '' Hollingsworth v. Perry'' case.
President Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
chose Ginsberg and Robert Bauer, a Democrat, in 2013 to co-chair the Presidential Commission on Election Administration, a yearlong investigation into voting problems. Their findings, "The American Voting Experience: Report and Recommendations of the Presidential Commission on Election Administration," were published in 2014.
In September 2020, ''The Washington Post'' published an op-ed by Ginsberg that criticized President 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 Pe ...
for encouraging supporters to commit voter fraud and for making false statements claiming fraud was widespread when it is not. Ginsberg wrote, "The truth is that after decades of looking for illegal voting, there's no proof of widespread fraud. At most, there are isolated incidents — by both Democrats and Republicans. Elections are not rigged. Absentee ballots use the same process as mail-in ballots — different states use different labels for the same process."
He testified at the second public hearing of the January 6 House committee about Donald Trump's failed 2020 election lawsuits.
References
External links
Profile on Patton Boggs website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ginsberg, Benjamin
1952 births
American lawyers
Georgetown University Law Center alumni
Harvard Fellows
Living people
People associated with the 2000 United States presidential election
University of Pennsylvania alumni
Jewish American attorneys
The Daily Pennsylvanian people
Jones Day people
Pennsylvania Republicans
21st-century American Jews