Changes

[[Image:MichaelWilliams.jpg‎|right]]

[[Image:MichaelWilliams.jpg‎|right]]

'''Michael L. Williams''' (born May 31, 1953) is a [[Republican]] former member and chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission, the regulatory body over the [[oil]] and [[gas]] industries. In 1999, Williams was appointed to the  

'''Michael Lawrence Williams''' (born May 31, 1953) is a [[Republican]] former member/chairman of the Texas Railroad Commission, the regulatory body over the [[oil]] and [[natural gas]] industries. In 1999, Williams was appointed to the  

Railroad Commission by Governor [[George W. Bush]]. He then won a special election in 2000 and was reelected in 2002 and 2008 to six-year terms on the panel. He resigned from the commission in 2011 and was succeeded by Barry Smitherman, another Perry appointee who is a candidate for the Republican nomination for Williams' former seat in the July 31, 2012 runoff election.

Railroad Commission by Governor [[George W. Bush]]. He then won a special election in 2000 and was reelected to six-year terms in 2002 and 2008. He resigned from the commission in 2011 and was succeeded by Barry Smitherman, another Perry appointee who is a candidate for the Republican nomination for Williams' former seat in the July 31, 2012 runoff election.

After serving as an assistant district attorney, Williams was a prosecutor in the second [[Reagan Administration]]. In 1988, he was awarded the Attorney General's "Special Achievement Award" for the conviction of six [[Ku Klux Klan]] members. Williams would go on to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Law Enforcement under President [[George H. W. Bush]] and later Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil Rights. Though he had planned to seek the [[U.S. Senate]] seat vacated by [[Kay Bailey Hutchison]], Williams instead ran unsuccessfully in the May 29, 2012, Republican primary for a seat in the [[United States House of Representatives]].  

After serving as an assistant district attorney, Williams was a prosecutor in the second [[Reagan Administration]]. In 1988, he was awarded the Attorney General's "Special Achievement Award" for the conviction of six [[Ku Klux Klan]] members. Williams would go on to serve as Deputy Assistant Secretary for Law Enforcement under President [[George H. W. Bush]] and later Assistant Secretary of Education for Civil Rights. Though he had planned to seek the [[U.S. Senate]] seat vacated by [[Kay Bailey Hutchison]], Williams instead ran unsuccessfully in the May 29, 2012, Republican primary for a seat in the [[United States House of Representatives]].