Wikipedia

Council for National Policy

Not to be confused withNational Policy Institute.

TheCouncil for National Policy(CNP) is an umbrella organization and networking group that advocates for conservative andRepublican Partyinitiatives in the United States. It was launched in 1981 during theReagan administrationbyTim LaHayeand theChristian right,to "bring more focus and force to conservative advocacy".[1][2][3]The membership list for September 2020 was later leaked, showing that members included prominent Republicans and conservatives. Members are instructed not to reveal their membership or even name the group.[4]

Council for National Policy
AbbreviationCNP
Formation1981
TypePublic policythink tank
Websitecfnp.org

The CNP has been described byThe New York Timesas "a little-known club of a few hundred of the most powerful conservatives in the country", who meet three times yearly behind closed doors at undisclosed locations for a confidential conference.[5]The Nationhas called it a secretive organization that "networks wealthy right-wing donors together with top conservative operatives to plan long-term movement strategy".[6]

Meetings and membership

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About the CNP,Marc AmbinderofABC Newssaid: "The group wants to be the conservative version of theCouncil on Foreign Relations."The CNP was founded in 1981. Among its founding members were: Tim LaHaye, then the head of theMoral Majority,Nelson Bunker Hunt,T. Cullen Davis,William Cies,Howard Phillips,[7]andPaul Weyrich.[8]

Members of the CNP have included GeneralJohn Singlaub,shipping magnateJ. Peter Grace,Edwin FeulnerofThe Heritage Foundation,Rev.Pat Robertsonof theChristian Broadcasting Network,Jerry Falwell,U.S. SenatorTrent Lott,Southern Baptist Conventionactivists and retiredTexas Court of AppealsJudgePaul Pressler,lawyer andpaleoconservativeactivistMichael Peroutka,[9]ReverendPaige Patterson,[10]SenatorDon Nickles,former United States Attorneys GeneralEdwin MeeseandJohn Ashcroft,gun-rights activistLarry Pratt,ColonelOliver North,Steve Bannon,Kellyanne Conway,philanthropist Elsa Prince (mother ofBlackwaterfounder and former CEOErik Princeand Trump Administration Secretary of EducationBetsy Devos),Leonard Leo,Virginia Thomas(wife of Supreme Court JusticeClarence Thomas).[1]Former California State Assemblyman Steve Baldwin was CNP's executive director from 2000 to 2008.[11]Conservative attorneyCleta Mitchellsits on the board of governors for the organization.[12]

Membership is by invitation only. The organization's membership list is considered "strictly confidential". Guests may attend "only with the unanimous approval of the executive committee." Members are instructed not to refer to the organization by name to protect against leaks.[5]The New York Timespolitical writer David D. Kirkpatrick suggested that the organization's secrecy since its founding was intended to insulate it "from what its members considered the liberal bias of the news media."[2]CNP's meetings are closed to the general public to allow for a free-flowing exchange of ideas. The group meets three times per year.[13]This policy is said to be similar to the long-held policy of the Council on Foreign Relations, to which the CNP has at times been compared. CNP's 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status was revoked by theIRSin 1992 on grounds that it was not an organization run for the public benefit. The group successfully challenged this ruling in federal court.[citation needed]

While those involved in the organization are almost entirely from the United States, their organizations and influence cover the globe, both religiously and politically. Members include corporate executives,[14]legislators,[14]former high ranking government officers,[14]leaders of 'think tanks'[14]dedicated to molding society and those whom many view as "Christian leadership".[14]

In May 2016, theSouthern Poverty Law Centerreleased a leaked copy of the membership directory for 2014.[15][16]

A membership list for September 2020, leaked a year later, includedJerome Corsi,Michael Farris,Brigitte Gabriel,Frank Gaffney,Charlie Kirk,Tony Perkins,andMathew Staver.[4][17]

Conferences and political plans

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Leading members of the CNP voted in a meeting at the Grand America Hotel inSalt Lake City,on September 29, 2007, to consider launching athird partycandidate if the 2008 Republican nominee werepro-choice.(The candidacy of former New York City MayorRudy Giuliani,who held liberal opinions on social issues such as abortion, gay rights and gun ownership, had disturbed theChristian right.) The CNP's statement read, "If the Republican Party nominates a pro-abortion candidate, we will consider running a third-party candidate." Attending the meeting were notable social conservatives, includingJames Dobson,Richard Viguerie,Tony PerkinsandMorton Blackwell.[18][19]

CNP has membership links to theCommittee for the Free World,whose many other members included, among others, some members of theUnification Church of the United States,some Republican Party leaders, andcounter-revolutionariesin Latin America, particularly during the 1980s.[20]Midge Decterserved as Executive Director of its committee.[21][22][23]Other members includedJeane Kirkpatrick,Leszek Kołakowski,Irving Kristol,Melvin J. Lasky,Seymour M. Lipset,Donald Rumsfeld,Tom StoppardandGeorge Will.Eugene V. Rostow,then serving as Director of theArms Control and Disarmament Agencyunder PresidentRonald Reagan,was a speaker at a CFW event onPoland.[24]

CNP's membership also overlaps significantly with that of theArlington Group,a coalition of conservative Christian organizations which spearheaded ballot initiatives banning gay marriage in thirty-two states in the 2000s;[25][26][27]and with the second, third and fourth iterations of theCommittee on the Present Danger.[citation needed]

In his June 1997 speech at a CNP meeting in Montreal, Quebec, then president of theNational Citizens' Coalition,Stephen Harper—who later served as theprime minister of Canadafrom 2006 to 2015—said that the American "conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people [of Canada] and across the world."[28]

In 1999, a speech given to the CNP by Republican candidateGeorge W. Bushis credited with helping him gain the support of conservatives in his successful bid for theUnited States Presidencyin 2000. The content of the speech has never been released by the CNP or by Bush.[29]

In February 2007, the organization planned to be involved in the 2008 presidential election campaign and actively sought candidate that would represent their views.U.S. Vice PresidentDick Cheney[30]and former Massachusetts governorMitt Romney[31]spoke at a four-day conference that the council held inSalt Lake City, Utah,during the last week of September 2007. The Council for National Policy scheduled a conference in late October 2007; other than Giuliani, most Republican presidential candidates pledged to appear.[32]

On August 21, 2020,President Trumpattended a CNP meeting where he gave a speech.[33]

In an October 14, 2020,Washington Postarticle, which described the CNP as a "little-known group that has served for decades as a hub for a nationwide network of conservative activists and the donors who support them", one of the attendees of the August 2020 meeting in Arlington, warned of plans by Democrats to "steal this election". He said that, "if they get away with that, what happens? Democracy is finished because they usher in totalitarianism."[1]

Leadership

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CNP was founded in 1981 by Southern Baptist pastor Tim LaHaye, author ofThe Battle for the Mind(1980) and theLeft Behindseries of books. Other early participants have includedW. Cleon Skousen,atheologianwithinthe Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saintsand founder of theFreemen Institute;Paul Weyrich;Phyllis Schlafly;Robert Grant;Howard Phillips,a former Republican affiliated with theConstitution Party;Richard Viguerie,the direct-mail specialist; andMorton Blackwell,aLouisianaandVirginiaactivist who is considered a specialist on the rules of the Republican Party.[34][35][36]

The council's first executive director wasWoody Jenkins;later, Morton Blackwell and Bob Reccord served in this role. Organization presidents have includedNelson Bunker HuntofDallas,Amway co-founderRichard DeVosofMichigan,Pat RobertsonofVirginia Beach,retired JudgePaul PresslerofHouston,former Reagan Cabinet secretariesEdwin MeeseandDonald Hodel,former Reagan advisor and President of theIntercollegiate Studies InstituteKenneth Cribb,Family Research CouncilpresidentTony Perkins,and current President (as of 2014)Stuart Epperson,founder of theSalem Media Group.[36][37][38][39]

See also

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Further reading

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  • Nelson, Anne(2019).Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right.New York: Bloomsbury Publishing.ISBN978-1-63557-319-0.OCLC1126560275.
  • Katie Thornton (November 22, 2022)."The Divided Dial: Episode 2 - From Pulpit to Politics - On the Media".WNYC Studios(Podcast).RetrievedNovember 26,2022.

References

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  1. ^abcO'Harrow Jr., Robert (October 14, 2020)."Videos show closed-door sessions of leading conservative activists: 'Be not afraid of the accusations that you're a voter suppressor'".The Washington Post.RetrievedMarch 2,2021.
  2. ^abKirkpatrick, David D. (February 24, 2007)."Christian Right Labors to Find '08 Candidate".The New York Times.Washington, DC.RetrievedMarch 2,2021.
  3. ^Nelson, Anne (2019)."Shadow Network".Bloomsbury Publishing.Retrieved2019-11-09.
  4. ^abWilson, Jason (30 September 2021)."Top Republicans rub shoulders with extremists in secretive rightwing group, leak reveals".The Guardian.
  5. ^abKirkpatrick, David K. (August 28, 2004)."The 2004 Campaign: The Conservative; Club of the Most Powerful Gathers in Strictest Privacy".The New York Times.RetrievedMarch 2,2021.
  6. ^Max Blumenthal,Secretive Right-Wing Group Vetted PalinArchived2014-05-29 at theWayback Machinethenation 09/01/2008
  7. ^"A History of Accomplishment".The Conservative Caucus.Retrieved5 January2019.
  8. ^Inside the Council for National PolicyABC NewsMay 8, 2008
  9. ^Kirkpatrick, David D. (August 28, 2004)."The 2004 Campaign: The Conservatives; Club of the Most Powerful Gathers in Strictest Privacy".The New York Times.
  10. ^The War for Thee University, page 191.November 1991.RetrievedFebruary 16,2011.{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help)
  11. ^"About Steve Baldwin".Archived fromthe originalon 2016-03-06.
  12. ^Nelson, Anne (February 22, 2021)."How the CNP, a Republican Powerhouse, Helped Spawn Trumpism, Disrupted the Transfer of Power, and Stoked the Assault on the Capitol".The Washington Spectator.Archivedfrom the original on June 10, 2022.Retrieved30 July2022.
  13. ^Gibbs, Nancy; Duffy, Michael (October 4, 2007)."Still Looking for Mr. Right".Time.Archived fromthe originalon October 10, 2007.
  14. ^abcdeAdam Clymer,"Conservatives Gather in Umbrella Council for a National Policy",The New York Times,May 20, 1981
  15. ^"The Council for National Policy: Behind the Curtain | Southern Poverty Law Center".RetrievedMay 19,2020.
  16. ^Berlet, Chip (2018).Trumping democracy in the United States: from Ronald Reagan to alt-right.London: Routledge.ISBN978-1-315-43839-9.OCLC1129904664.
  17. ^Leonard, Kimberly; Relman, Eliza; Beckler, Hannah (24 September 2021)."One of the most secretive and powerful groups in GOP politics just had its cellphone numbers leaked. Here's what its members said about Trump 2024 when we started calling".Business Insider.
  18. ^Martin, Jonathan (2007-09-30)."Social conservatives may back 3rd party over Rudy".POLITICO.Retrieved2016-04-30.
  19. ^Scherer, Michael (2007-09-30)."Religious right may blackball Giuliani".Salon.Retrieved2016-04-30.
  20. ^"Committee for the Free World - Political Research Associates - Right Web".Rightweb.irc-online.org. 7 January 1989.Retrieved2010-02-20.
  21. ^"Board of Trustees".Archived from the original on March 16, 2010.
  22. ^"Midge Decter".National Endowment for the Humanities.
  23. ^Decter, Midge (2001).An old wife's tale: my seven decades in love and war.New York: Regan Books.ISBN978-0-06-039428-8.OCLC46421841.
  24. ^Judith Miller,Arms control chief asserts Reagan is uncertain how to use power,The New York Times,January 23, 1982
  25. ^Ireland, Doug(Summer 2006)."Back to the Future: GOP Revives Anti-Gay Marriage Campaign for '06".The Public Eye Magazine.Retrieved2020-01-19– viaPolitical Research Associates.
  26. ^"Blackwell is darling of foes of gay marriage".Democratic Underground. 2006-05-07.Retrieved2020-01-19.
  27. ^Sheryl Gay Stolberg (2005-01-25)."Backers of Gay Marriage Ban Use Social Security as Cudgel".The New York Times.Retrieved2020-01-19.
  28. ^"National Citizens Coalition (NCC) – Harper's presidency was a critical period]".The Harper Index.May 11, 2007. Archived fromthe originalon March 3, 2016.
  29. ^ABC
  30. ^Gonzalez, Nathan C. (2007-09-28)."VP Cheney makes quick trip to Utah to address secretive conservative policy group".Salt Lake Tribune.
  31. ^Gibbs, Nancy (2007-10-05)."Still Looking For Mr. Right".Time.Archived fromthe originalon February 3, 2008.
  32. ^"Christian Conservatives Vow To Back Third Party Candidate If Giuliani Wins GOP Nomination", Bismarck, SD CBS affiliate,http:// kxmb /News/Nation/167321.aspArchived2007-12-28 at theWayback Machine
  33. ^Donald Trump (August 2020),Speech by Donald Trump,Arlington{{citation}}:CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
  34. ^"Home - Americans United".au.org.
  35. ^"Council for National Policy".nndb.
  36. ^ab"Behind closed doors: who is the council for national policy and what are they up to? And why don't they want you to know? - Free Online Library".thefreelibrary.
  37. ^"Council for National Policy (CNP) - I - J - K - Member Biographies".seekgod.ca.
  38. ^"Council for National Policy Executives & Members".seekgod.ca.Archived fromthe originalon 2007-06-20.Retrieved2007-10-08.
  39. ^"Tony Perkins, President".Family Research Council. 2003-08-21.Retrieved2020-01-19.
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