Max Cornell
The Honourable Max Cornell | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Deputy for Iberville's 3rd district | |
| Assumed office 17 August 2015 | |
| Deputy for Le Rocher's 1st district | |
| In office 17 July 2010 – 23 July 2015 | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 22 February 1949 Beaurepaire, Jaspère |
| Nationality | Aininian |
| Political party | National Alliance |
| Spouse | Susanne Cornell |
| Alma mater | University of Risagne |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Military service | |
| Allegiance |  Ainin |
| Branch/service | File:Ainarmy.png Aininian Army |
| Years of service | 1967-1973 |
| Rank | Brigadier |
| Unit | 14th Airmobile Brigade, 8th Division |
| Battles/wars | Concordian War |
Maxime "Max" William Cornell is an Aininian politician and leader of the National Alliance since 2006. From 2010 until 2015, he was a deputy for Le Rocher, when he was unseated by the West Ainin Independence Movement for his opposition to West Aininian independence. He returned to the National Assembly in July 2015 when he was elected as deputy for Iberville in a by-election.
Born to immigrant parents from Britanno, Cornell grew up in a middle-class neighbourhood in Beaurepaire. At age 18, he was conscripted into the Aininian Army and served for six years, deploying to Nautarya during the Concordian War and reaching the rank of brigadier. After his discharge, he attended the University of Risagne on a scholarship and obtained certification as a lawyer. He began working in 1977 as a public defender in Fort-Françilien, an experience he would later call "formative" in his contempt for criminals and gangs. He became the chief public defender for Risagne in 1994. He was removed from office in 1999 after being convicted of contempt of court for colluding with prosecutors to obtain a coerced confession from a suspected member of the Islamic Liberation Front.
In the same year, he joined the National Alliance and later stood as a candidate in the 2001 Risagne provincial election, where he came in third with 11% of the vote. He achieved national recognition in 2003 for his successful defence of the legality of the Twenty-fourth Amendment, which revoked the due process rights of illegal immigrants, before the Supreme Court of Ainin. In 2006, he was elected leader of the National Alliance and unsucessfully stood in the 2006 election in Avran, Mercier, coming in second with 29% of the vote. In 2010, he was elected as deputy for Le Rocher, West Ainin, winning reelection in 2014. He lost reelection in 2015 after calling West Aininian separatists "degenerates." He returned to the National Assembly in July after a National Alliance deputy in Iberville, Jaspère stood down so that Cornell could contest the subsequent by-election. He was elected with 64% of the vote.
Cornell is a controversial figure in Ainin, accused by his critics of being a demagogue and white supremacist. He has voiced strong opposition to the presence of Islam in Ainin and to Aininian membership in the Esquarian Community. He is known for inflammatory remarks, such as calling for the demolition of all minarets or the recommissioning of the battleship Bonaventure to "destroy illegal boats." At various times in his career, he has called for military conflict with Ankoren, Tuthina, Luziyca, the Caliphate, syndicalism and the Esquarian Football Association.