Merrick Garland
A respected federal judge whose Supreme Court nomination was historically blocked, later serving as Attorney General during a period of profound national division.
Born 1952 (age 74)·American lawyer and jurist·Birthday: November 13·Baby Boomers
Biography
Merrick Garland's career is a study in judicial temperament and a case study in modern political conflict. A Chicago native and Harvard Law graduate, he clerked for Supreme Court Justice William Brennan before building a reputation as a meticulous prosecutor at the Justice Department, notably overseeing the investigation into the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. Appointed to the powerful D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals in 1997, he earned bipartisan respect for his moderate, carefully reasoned opinions. In 2016, President Obama nominated him to fill the Supreme Court vacancy left by Antonin Scalia, but Senate Republicans refused to hold hearings, an unprecedented move that altered the court's trajectory. After the political storm subsided, Garland returned to the bench until 2021, when President Biden appointed him Attorney General. In that role, he faced the immense tasks of depoliticizing the Justice Department, overseeing prosecutions related to the January 6th Capitol attack, and confronting a rise in domestic threats.
Baby Boomers
1946–1964
The largest generation in history at the time. Shaped by postwar prosperity, the Vietnam War, the sexual revolution, and Watergate. They questioned every institution their parents built — then ran them.
Merrick was born in 1952, placing them squarely in the Baby Boomers. The events that shaped this generation — postwar prosperity, civil rights, Vietnam, and the counterculture — shaped the world they entered and the choices available to them.
#1 When Merrick Was Born
The biggest hits of 1952
#1 Movie
The Greatest Show on Earth
Best Picture
The Greatest Show on Earth
#1 TV Show
I Love Lucy
Merrick's Life & Times
The world at every milestone
1952Born
Queen Elizabeth II ascends the throne
Gas: $0.27/galHome: $8,350Min wage: $0.75/hrPresident: Harry S. Truman"Blue Tango" — Leroy AndersonBest Picture: The Greatest Show on Earth
1957Started school
Sputnik launches the Space Age
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $10,550Min wage: $1.00/hrPresident: Dwight D. Eisenhower"All Shook Up" — Elvis PresleyBest Picture: The Bridge on the River Kwai
1965Became a teenager
US sends combat troops to Vietnam
Gas: $0.31/galHome: $13,600Min wage: $1.25/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"(I Can't Get No) Satisfaction" — The Rolling StonesBest Picture: The Sound of Music
1968Could drive
Martin Luther King Jr. and Robert Kennedy assassinated
Gas: $0.34/galHome: $14,950Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Lyndon B. Johnson"Hey Jude" — The BeatlesBest Picture: Oliver!
1970Could vote
First Earth Day; The Beatles break up
Gas: $0.36/galHome: $17,000Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Bridge over Troubled Water" — Simon & GarfunkelBest Picture: Patton
1973Turned 21
US withdraws from Vietnam; Roe v. Wade decided
Gas: $0.39/galHome: $22,100Min wage: $1.60/hrPresident: Richard Nixon"Tie a Yellow Ribbon Round the Ole Oak Tree" — Tony Orlando & DawnBest Picture: The Sting
1982Turned 30
Michael Jackson releases Thriller
Gas: $1.22/galHome: $55,200Min wage: $3.35/hrPresident: Ronald Reagan"Physical" — Olivia Newton-JohnBest Picture: Gandhi
1992Turned 40
LA riots after Rodney King verdict
Gas: $1.13/galHome: $84,300Min wage: $4.25/hrPresident: George H.W. Bush"End of the Road" — Boyz II MenBest Picture: Unforgiven
2002Turned 50
Euro currency enters circulation
Gas: $1.36/galHome: $137,800Min wage: $5.15/hrPresident: George W. Bush"How You Remind Me" — NickelbackBest Picture: Chicago
2012Turned 60
Curiosity rover lands on Mars; Sandy Hook shooting
Gas: $3.64/galHome: $143,200Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Barack Obama"Somebody That I Used to Know" — GotyeBest Picture: Argo
2022Turned 70
Russia invades Ukraine; Queen Elizabeth II dies
Gas: $3.97/galHome: $348,700Min wage: $7.25/hrPresident: Joe Biden"As It Was" — Harry StylesBest Picture: Everything Everywhere All at Once
2026Age 74 today
Gas: $3.91/galPresident: Donald Trump
Key Achievements
- Served as the 86th United States Attorney General from 2021 to 2025, overseeing the Department of Justice.
- Nominated by President Barack Obama to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2016, a nomination that was not acted upon by the Senate.
- Served as a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit for over two decades, from 1997 to 2021.
- Played a key role as a prosecutor in the investigation and prosecution of the perpetrators of the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
Did You Know?
He was a National Merit Scholar and valedictorian of his high school class.
He once worked as a shoe salesman and a grocery store clerk to help pay for his education.
As a young lawyer, he worked pro bono to help represent a mentally disabled death row inmate in Florida.
He is known for teaching a seminar on the legal system at his alma mater, Harvard Law School.
“The essence of the rule of law is that like cases are treated alike.”
