Bob Bauer, Biden Campaign Lawyer: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know

Bob Bauer

Getty Bob Bauer.

Bob Bauer is a senior adviser to the campaign of Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden.

The lawyer has been making headlines recently after he assured that any attempt by President Donald Trump to disqualify ballots before the Supreme Court will result in an “embarrassing defeat,” according to Bloomberg.

“If he arrives before the Supreme Court with a novel proposition that ballots that were lawfully cast by eligible voters could not get counted by the time Donald Trump wanted them to, that somehow they don’t count anymore, he will be in for one of the most embarrassing defeats a president ever suffered before the highest court of the land,” he said on Bloomberg.

The president vowed on Wednesday, November 4, that he would take the presidential election to the Supreme Court because he wants “all voting to stop,” the Associated Press reported. However, all voting is now currently over and only counting is taking place, the outlet continued.

The AP said no states will count absentee ballots postmarked after Election Day.

Richard Hasen, an election law expert, wrote in Slate over the weekend that “there has never been any basis to claim that a ballot arriving on time cannot be counted if officials cannot finish their count on election night.”

Bauer assured on Bloomberg that the Biden campaign was prepared to “defend” the voting process.

“We’re going to defend this vote,” he said. “The vote by which Joe Biden has been elected to the presidency.”

The Associated Press added that Trump would be not be able to “go directly to the high court with a claim of fraud” anyways, considering states typically decide when the counting stops.

“Trump and his campaign could allege problems with the way votes are counted in individual states,” the outlet said. “But they would have to start their legal fight in a state or lower federal court.”

The AP also noted a pending Republican appeal at the Supreme Court surrounding whether Pennsylvania should be able to count mail ballots arriving from Wednesday to Friday. The extension was ordered by the state supreme court, the AP said, and only surrounds ballots already cast and in possession of election officials.

Here’s what you need to know about Bob Bauer:


1. Bauer Is a Professor of Practice at NYU Law & Worked on Barack Obama’s 2008 and 2012 Campaigns

bauer

MANDEL NGAN/AFP via GettyU.S. President Barack Obama and Vice President Joe Biden meet with the Presidents Commission on Election Administration in the Roosevelt Room of the White House on January 22, 2014 in Washington, DC. From left: Senior Advisor Valeris Jarrett, Commission co-chair Robert Bauer, Biden, Obama, and co-chair Benjamin Ginsberg.

Bauer is currently a Professor of Practice and Distinguished Scholar in Residence at New York University’s School of Law, according to his biography on the school’s website. He also serves as the Co-Director of NYU’s Legislative and Regulatory Process Clinic, the page continues.

The lawyer, who returned to private practice in June 2011, worked as the general counsel to Obama for America, the the former president’s campaign organization, in 2008 and 2012, his NYU biography claims.

Bauer’s other experience includes serving as co-counsel to the New Hampshire State Senate in the trial of former chief justice David Brock in 2000 and counsel to the Democratic leader in the trial of former president William Clinton in 1999, NYU states.


2. He Has Authored Several Books on Campaign Finance Law

Bauer is the author of several books on campaign finance law, as well as articles on various topics for law reviews and periodicals, according to his NYU biography. He is a contributing editor of Lawfare and writes legal commentary for Just Security, the page continues.

The author has also published opinion pieces in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Atlantic and other publications, the faculty page reads.

In 2000, he received the “Burton Award for Legal Achievement” for his legal writing, NYU reported on Bauer’s page.


3. Bauer Attended Harvard University & the University of Virginia Law School

harvard

GettyHarvard University’s main campus.

According to his faculty page on NYU law, Bauer received a bachelor’s degree from Harvard University in 1973.

He then earned his law degree from the University of Virginia School of Law three years later in 1976, the page continues.

In 2014, Bauer served as a board member on the National Advisory Board of Journal of Law and Politics, the faculty page claims under the “Honors and Activities” section.


4. Bauer Is Married to a Former White House Director of Communications

anita dunn

GettyInterim White House Communications Director Anita Dunn, left, talks with White House Senior Advisor David Axelrod before the start of a swearing-in ceremony in the East Room of the White House May 1, 2009 in Washington, DC.

Bauer, who was hails from New York City, is married to Anita Dunn, a former director of communications at the White House, Roll Call reported.

In 2008, the couple was described by Newsweek Magazine as Washington’s new “power couple.”

“Bauer was the campaign’s chief lawyer while Dunn ran the research and rapid-response unit,” the magazine states, referencing John Podesta’s campaign. “Both are heading back to their respective lobbying and consulting shops.”


5.Bauer Says Democrats Are Prepared to Counteract Any Unprecedented Challenges Stemming From the 2020 Presidential Race, According to the Independent

biden campaign

GettyFormer U.S. Vice President and Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden arrives for a campaign kickoff rally, May 18, 2019 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

According to The Independent, Bauer described the 2020 presidential race as “a pretty heated environment,” but remained adamant about tackling any “unprecedented challenges.”

“We don’t want there to be undue concern and alarm that would discourage people from voting,” said Bauer.

“We can respond anywhere in the country to these issues immediately,” he added.

His statements came at a time when the president called on his supporters to behave as “poll watchers,” the outlet continued.

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