Ann Hart Coulter (born December 8, 1961) is an American social and political commentator, author, and syndicated columnist. She frequently appears on television, radio, and as a speaker at public and private events. Well-known for her conservative political opinions and the controversial ways in which she defends them, Coulter has described herself as a polemicist who likes to "stir up the pot" and, unlike "broadcasters," does not "pretend to be impartial or balanced."
Coulter was born December 8, 1961 in New York City. She and her two older brothers were raised in New Canaan, Connecticut. Coulter has described her family as "upper middle class" and her attorney father a "union buster."
Coulter graduated with honors from Cornell University in 1984 and received her law degree at University of Michigan Law School, where she was an editor of The Michigan Law Review.
Coulter served as a law clerk in Kansas City for Pasco Bowman II of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit. After briefly working in private practice in New York City, Coulter went to work for the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee in 1995, handling crime and immigration issues for Sen. Spencer Abraham of Michigan.
Coulter first stepped into the public eye when she was hired in 1996 by MSNBC as a legal correspondent. The channel dismissed her twice, first in February 1997 after she insulted the late Pamela Harriman, the U.S. Ambassador to France, as it was covering her memorial service and again when she tangled with a Vietnam veteran campaigning against landmines.
She made frequent guest appearances on many television and radio talk shows. Coulter is also the author of six books. Her first, High Crimes and Misdemeanors: The Case Against Bill Clinton was published in 1998, making a case for Clinton's impeachment. Her most recent book If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans; was published in October 2007.
Coulter periodically triggers a firestorm of controversy with her writings and appearances. She slammed four activist widows of the 9/11 attack, known as "The Jersey Girls" after they endorsed John Kerry for president in 2004, writing, "I've never seen people enjoying their husbands' deaths so much."
Coulter also said in an interview that Oklahoma City bomber Timothy McVeigh should have bombed The New York Times building. And she called 2004 Democratic vice presidential nominee John Edwards a "faggot."
Coulter has been engaged several times, but never married. She owns both a condominium in Manhattan and a house in Palm Beach, Florida.
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