HERITAGE FOUNDATION

The 'Heritage Foundation' is a conservative public policy research institute based in Washington, D.C., in the United States.
Heritage's stated mission is to "formulate and promote conservative public policies based on the principles of free enterprise, limited government, individual freedom, traditional American values, and a strong national defense."Heritage Foundation - About
Founded in 1973, Heritage's initial funding came from political conservative Joseph Coors, co-owner of the Coors Brewing Company. Funding from Coors was later augmented by financial support from billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife. Conservative activist Paul Weyrich was its first head. Since 1977, Heritage's president has been Edwin Feulner, Jr., previously the staff director of the House Republican Study Committee and a former staff assistant to U.S. Congressman Phil Crane.
Until 2001, the Heritage Foundation published ''Policy Review'', a public policy journal, which was then acquired by the Hoover Institution. From 1995 to 2005, the Heritage Foundation ran Townhall.com, a conservative website.^[1]

Contents

History and major initiatives

''Mandate for Leadership''

Cold War and foreign policy involvement

Free market domestic policies

Policy influence

Financial support and lobbying

Major donors

Corporate support

Foreign support and relations

See also

Notes

External links

History and major initiatives

''Mandate for Leadership''

The Heritage Foundation is known for the nature of its work. After many years of consumer rights activism from people like Ralph Nader, Heritage's 1981 book of policy analysis, ''Mandate for Leadership'' was a landmark in advocacy for corporate rights and limited government. At 1,000-plus pages, ''Mandate for Leadership'' offered specific recommendations on policy, budget and administrative action for all Cabinet departments, as well as agencies to be staffed by political appointees in the incoming conservative administration of President Ronald Reagan. Heritage still calls itself "[Ronald] Reagan's Favorite Think Tank."

Cold War and foreign policy involvement

In the 1980s and early 1990s, the Heritage Foundation was a key architect and advocate of the "Reagan Doctrine", under which the United States government supported anti-Communist resistance movements in such places as Afghanistan, Angola, Cambodia and Nicaragua and generally supported global anti-communism during the Cold War. Heritage foreign policy analysts also provided policy guidance to these rebel forces and to dissidents in Eastern bloc nations and Soviet republics.
The foundation was instrumental in advancing President Ronald Reagan's belief that the former Soviet Union was an "evil empire" and that its defeat, not its mere containment, was a realistic foreign policy objective. Heritage also played a key role in building support for Reagan's plans to build an orbital ballistic missile shield, known as the "Strategic Defense Initiative".
Internationally, and in partnership with the ''Wall Street Journal'', Heritage publishes the annual ''Index of Economic Freedom'', which measures a country's freedom in terms of property rights and freedom from government regulation. The factors used to calculate the ''Index'' score are corruption in government, barriers to international trade, income tax and corporate tax rates, government expenditures, rule of law and the ability to enforce contracts, regulatory burdens, banking restrictions, labor regulations, and black market activities. Deficiencies lower the score on Heritage's ''Index''.
Since the end of the Cold War, Heritage has continued to be an active voice in foreign affairs and has been generally supportive of President George W. Bush's foreign policies.

Free market domestic policies

In domestic policy, Heritage is a proponent of supply-side economics, which holds that reductions in the marginal rate of taxation can spur economic growth.
In 1994, Heritage advised Newt Gingrich and other conservatives on the development of the "Contract with America", which was credited with helping to produce a Republican majority in Congress. The "Contract" was a pact of principles that directly challenged both the political status-quo in Washington and many of the ideas at the heart of the Clinton administration. As such, Heritage is often credited with supplying many of the ideas that ultimately proved influential in ending the Democrats' control of Congress in 1992. Heritage has also worked with Democrats on policy matters over the years, including former U.S. Senator John Breaux and other "blue dog" Democrats.

Policy influence

Unlike traditional think tanks, which tend to house scholars and politicians-in-exile who produce large books, Heritage tends to employ public policy analysts who produce comparatively shorter policy papers intended to pass what Heritage calls "the briefcase test" for busy politicians to read on the run.
Heritage has earned a major place among Washington think tanks. Similar think tanks include the American Enterprise Institute and the libertarian Cato Institute. Heritage's liberal counterparts include the Brookings Institution, the Center for American Progress, and the Urban Institute. In keeping with its emphasis on political accessibility, Heritage maintains its eight-story headquarters on Capitol Hill, a short walk from the United States Congress.
Heritage has extended its influence by organizing an annual Heritage Foundation's 'Resource Bank' meeting "Resource Bank" meeting for like-minded think tanks around the U.S.
Many Heritage Foundation personnel have held, or gone on to hold influential roles in American business and government, including Richard V. Allen, L. Paul Bremer, Elaine Chao, Lawrence Di Rita, Michael Johns, John F. Lehman, Edwin Meese, Steve Ritchie and others.NNDB - The Heritage Foundation

Financial support and lobbying

In 2005 Heritage raised $29.7 million in corporate and individual donations. Core funding comes from conservative foundations and individual donors: In 1995, 31 checks accounted for $8.5 million; another 123 donors supplied $2.6 million.
In 2006, Heritage retained the law firm of Foley & Lardner to lobby and to prepare foundation officials on how to deal with Congress on the issue of banning private funding of congressional travel, meals and lodging. Although Heritage does not take the Section H allowance of Internal Revenue Service 501(c)(3) provisions that would allow it to spend approximately 20% of its tax-exempt funding on lobbying, it and other 501(c)(3) educational organizations are nevertheless allowed to lobby on legislation that directly affects the foundation.^[2]

Major donors

In 1973, businessman Joseph Coors contributed a quarter-million dollars to start The Heritage Foundation. Since then, money has come from the founders of Amway Corp. and the conservative Bradley, Olin and Scaife foundations. Billionaire Richard Mellon Scaife and other wealthy individuals also have been Heritage Foundation donors.

Corporate support

Heritage has received support from nearly 100 major corporations, including Chase Manhattan Bank, Dow Chemical Company, Ford Motor Company, General Motors, GlaxoSmithKline, Mobil, and Procter & Gamble.Heritage Foundation Profile - RightWeb

Foreign support and relations

Heritage's 1995 annual report acknowledges a $400,000 grant from the Korean conglomerate Samsung. Another donor, the Korea Foundation, which receives money from the South Korean government, has given Heritage almost $1 million.
The Hong Kong consulting firm Belle Haven Consultants, which has paid millions of dollars to Washington lobbying firms such as Alexander Strategy Group on behalf of Malaysian interests, was founded in 1997 by Edwin Feulner and Heritage's Asian specialist Ken Sheffer. Belle Haven employed Feulner's wife, Linda, and is based in the same office as Heritage's Hong Kong office.Houses of scandal
In 2006, the Foundation established the Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom,Margaret Thatcher Center for Freedom based on a grant from the Margaret Thatcher Foundation, to promote United States/United Kingdom cooperation and to advance the transatlantic alliance between the two countries. Lady Thatcher has since been named Patron of the Heritage Foundation, her only official association with any U.S.-based group. In addition, Heritage has a Moscow office staffed by Yevgeny Volk.

See also

★ Virginia Lamp Thomas, Director, Executive Branch relations

Notes

1. About Us Townhall.com
2. Washington Post - Help With the Nitty Gritty

External links

★ Heritage Foundation Heritage Foundation Official Web Site.

★ Heritage Foundation Official Blog.

★ ''Index of Economic Freedom'', Heritage Foundation.

★ Heritage Foundation profile at NNDB.

★ ''Policy Experts: The Inside Guide to Public Policy Experts and Organizations'', list of policy experts by topic and location published by the Heritage Foundation.

★ ''The Power of Ideas: The Heritage Foundation at 25 Years'', book on the Heritage Foundation's history (1973-1998).

★ dKos profile of Heritage Foundation.

★ ''RightWeb'' profile of Heritage Foundation.

★ Interhemispheric Resource Center profile of Heritage Foundation

★ Foundation grants given to the Heritage Foundation, 1985-2004, Media Transparency.