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| {{Short description|US nonprofit conservative organization}} | |||
| {{distinguish|National Policy Institute}} | |||
| {{Infobox organization | {{Infobox organization | ||
| |name = Council for National Policy | |name = Council for National Policy | ||
| |image = |
|image = CNP logo.jpg | ||
| |caption = | |caption = | ||
| |motto = Strengthening the Conservative Movement | |||
| |abbreviation = CNP | |abbreviation = CNP | ||
| |formation = 1981 | |formation = 1981 | ||
| Line 11: | Line 12: | ||
| |leader_title = | |leader_title = | ||
| |leader_name = | |leader_name = | ||
| |budget = | |budget = | ||
| |website = |
|website = {{URL|cfnp.org}} | ||
| }} | }} | ||
| {{Conservatism US}} | |||
| ⚫ | The |
||
| The '''Council for National Policy''' ('''CNP''') is an umbrella organization and networking group that advocates for conservative and ] initiatives in the United States. It was launched in 1981 during the ] by ] and the ], to "bring more focus and force to conservative advocacy".<ref name="WaPo_OHarrow_20201014"/><ref name="NYT-2-25-07">{{Cite news| last = Kirkpatrick| first = David D.| title = Christian Right Labors to Find '08 Candidate| work = The New York Times| location = Washington, DC|date=February 24, 2007| access-date = March 2, 2021| url = https://www.nytimes.com/2007/02/25/us/politics/25secret.html}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.bloomsbury.com/us/shadow-network-9781635573190/|title=Shadow Network|last=Nelson|first=Anne|date=2019|website=Bloomsbury Publishing|language=en|access-date=2019-11-09}}</ref> 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.<ref name=leak2020>{{Cite news |title=Top Republicans rub shoulders with extremists in secretive rightwing group, leak reveals |last=Wilson |first=Jason |newspaper=The Guardian |date=30 September 2021 |url= https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2021/sep/30/revealed-council-national-policy-republicans-extremists}}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | The CNP has been described by '']'' as "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.<ref name="NYT-8-28-04">{{Cite news| last = Kirkpatrick| first = David K.| title = The 2004 Campaign: The Conservative; Club of the Most Powerful Gathers in Strictest Privacy| work = The New York Times| access-date = March 2, 2021| date = August 28, 2004| url = https://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/28/us/2004-campaign-conservatives-club-most-powerful-gathers-strictest-privacy.html}}</ref> '']'' has called it a secretive organization that "networks wealthy right-wing donors together with top conservative operatives to plan long-term movement strategy".<ref>Max Blumenthal, {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140529000030/http://www.thenation.com/blogs/campaignmatters/352178/secretive_right_wing_group_vetted_palin |date=2014-05-29 }} thenation.com 09/01/2008</ref> | ||
| == Meetings and membership == | == Meetings and membership == | ||
| ] of ] |
About the CNP, ] of ] said: "The group wants to be the conservative version of the ]." The CNP was founded in 1981. Among its founding members were: Tim LaHaye, then the head of the ], ], ], William Cies, ],<ref>{{cite web |title=A History of Accomplishment |url=https://www.conservativeusa.org/history-accomplishment |publisher=The Conservative Caucus |access-date=5 January 2019}}</ref> and ].<ref> ] May 8, 2008</ref> | ||
| Members of the CNP have included |
Members of the CNP have included General ], shipping magnate ], ] of ], Rev. ] of the ], ], U.S. Senator ], ] activists and retired ] Judge ], lawyer and ] activist ],<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/28/us/2004-campaign-conservatives-club-most-powerful-gathers-strictest-privacy.html|title=The 2004 Campaign: The Conservatives; Club of the Most Powerful Gathers in Strictest Privacy|first=David D.|last=Kirkpatrick|date=August 28, 2004|work=The New York Times}}</ref> Reverend ],<ref>{{cite book | ||
| | title = The War for Thee University, page 191 | | title = The War for Thee University, page 191 | ||
| | |
| work = ] | ||
| | date = |
| date = November 1991 | ||
| | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=sysEAAAAMBAJ& |
| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=sysEAAAAMBAJ&q=ta+patterson+baptist&pg=PA189 | ||
| | |
| access-date = February 16, 2011}} | ||
| </ref> Senator ], former United States Attorneys General ] and ], gun-rights activist ], |
</ref> Senator ], former United States Attorneys General ] and ], gun-rights activist ], Colonel ], ], ], philanthropist Elsa Prince (mother of ] founder and former CEO ] and Trump Administration Secretary of Education ]), ], ] (wife of Supreme Court Justice ]).<ref name="WaPo_OHarrow_20201014" /> Former California State Assemblyman Steve Baldwin was CNP's executive director from 2000 to 2008.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.steve-baldwin.com/about|title=About Steve Baldwin|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306043117/http://www.steve-baldwin.com/about|archive-date=2016-03-06}}</ref> Conservative attorney ] sits on the board of governors for the organization.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Nelson |first1=Anne |title=How the CNP, a Republican Powerhouse, Helped Spawn Trumpism, Disrupted the Transfer of Power, and Stoked the Assault on the Capitol |url=https://washingtonspectator.org/nelson-cnp/ |website=The Washington Spectator |access-date=30 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220610042035/https://washingtonspectator.org/nelson-cnp/ |archive-date=June 10, 2022 |date=February 22, 2021 |url-status=live}}</ref> | ||
| Membership is by invitation only. |
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.<ref name="NYT-8-28-04"/> ''The New York Times'' political 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."<ref name="NYT-2-25-07"/> 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.<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Nancy|last1=Gibbs|first2=Michael|last2=Duffy|title=Still Looking for Mr. Right|magazine=]|date=October 4, 2007|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668472,00.html|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071010103913/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668472,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=October 10, 2007}}</ref> 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 the ] in 1992 on grounds that it was not an organization run for the public benefit. The group successfully challenged this ruling in federal court.{{cn|date=December 2024}} | ||
| ⚫ | 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,<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981">Adam Clymer, , ''The New York Times'', May 20, 1981</ref> legislators,<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> former high ranking government officers,<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> leaders of 'think tanks'<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> dedicated to molding society and those whom many view as "Christian leadership".<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> | ||
| CNP's meetings are closed to the general public, reportedly to allow for a free-flowing exchange of ideas. The group meets three times per year.<ref>{{cite magazine|first=Nancy|last1=Gibbs|first2=Michael|last2=Duffy|title=Still Looking for Mr. Right|work=Time|date=October 4, 2007|url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668472,00.html}}</ref> 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 the ] in 1992 on grounds that it was not an organization run for the public benefit. The group successfully challenged this ruling in federal court. A quarterly journal aimed at educating the public, promised in the wake of this incident, has not substantially materialized. The group has launched a website that contains selected speeches from past gatherings. | |||
| In May 2016, the ] released a leaked copy of the membership directory for 2014.<ref name="Council">{{cite web |url=https://www.splcenter.org/hatewatch/2016/05/17/council-national-policy-behind-curtain |title=The Council for National Policy: Behind the Curtain | Southern Poverty Law Center |access-date=May 19, 2020}}</ref><ref name="Berlet 2018">{{cite book | last=Berlet | first=Chip | title=Trumping democracy in the United States : from Ronald Reagan to alt-right | publisher=Routledge | location=London | year=2018 | isbn=978-1-315-43839-9 | oclc=1129904664 }}</ref> | |||
| ⚫ | While those involved are almost entirely from the United States, their organizations and influence cover the globe, both religiously and politically. Members include corporate executives,<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981">Adam Clymer, , ''The New York Times'', May 20, 1981</ref> legislators<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> former high ranking government officers,<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> leaders of 'think tanks'<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> dedicated to molding society and those whom many view as "Christian leadership".<ref name="NYT-5-20-1981"/> | ||
| A membership list for September 2020, leaked a year later, included ], ], ], ], ], ], and ].<ref name=leak2020/><ref>{{Cite web |title=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. |last1=Leonard |first1=Kimberly |last2=Relman |first2=Eliza |last3=Beckler |first3=Hannah |website=Business Insider |date=24 September 2021 |url= https://www.businessinsider.com/council-for-national-policy-members-trump-2024-2021-9}}</ref> | |||
| In May 2016, the ] released a leaked copy of the membership directory for 2014.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.splcenter.org/sites/default/files/cnp_redacted_final.pdf|title=2014 Membership Directory of the Council for National Policy, redacted and released by the Southern Poverty Law Center|publisher=}}</ref> | |||
| ==Conferences and political plans== | ==Conferences and political plans== | ||
| Leading members of the CNP voted in a meeting at the Grand America Hotel in ], on September 29, 2007, to consider launching a ] candidate if the 2008 Republican nominee were |
Leading members of the CNP voted in a meeting at the Grand America Hotel in ], on September 29, 2007, to consider launching a ] candidate if the 2008 Republican nominee were ]. (The candidacy of former New York City Mayor ], who held liberal opinions on social issues such as abortion, gay rights and gun ownership, had disturbed the ].) 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, including ], ], ] and ].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politico.com/blogs/jonathanmartin/0907/Social_conservatives_say_they_may_back_thirdparty_if_prochoicer_is_nominee.html|title=Social conservatives may back 3rd party over Rudy|last=Martin|first=Jonathan|date=2007-09-30|website=POLITICO.com|access-date=2016-04-30}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.salon.com/2007/09/30/giuliani_8/|title=Religious right may blackball Giuliani|last=Scherer|first=Michael|date=2007-09-30|website=Salon|access-date=2016-04-30}}</ref> | ||
| ⚫ | CNP has membership links to the ], whose many other members included, among others, some members of the ], some Republican Party leaders, and ] in Latin America, particularly during the 1980s.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://rightweb.irc-online.org/gw/1587.html |title=Committee for the Free World - Political Research Associates - Right Web |date=7 January 1989 |publisher=Rightweb.irc-online.org |access-date=2010-02-20}}</ref> ] served as Executive Director of its committee.<ref name="heritage">{{cite web|url=http://www.heritage.org/about/board-of-trustees|title=Board of Trustees}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.neh.gov/about/awards/national-humanities-medals/midge-decter|title=Midge Decter|website=National Endowment for the Humanities}}</ref><ref name="weekly">{{cite book | last=Decter | first=Midge | title=An old wife's tale : my seven decades in love and war | publisher=Regan Books | publication-place=New York | year=2001 | isbn=978-0-06-039428-8 | oclc=46421841 |url=https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-06-039428-8| page=}}</ref> Other members included ], ], ], ], ], ], ] and ]. ], then serving as Director of the ] under President ], was a speaker at a CFW event on ].<ref name="poland">Judith Miller, , ''The New York Times'', January 23, 1982</ref> | ||
| CNP members have been given billions of dollars by ], the founder of the ] and the conservative '']'' newspaper, and are aligned with various other groups supported by him such as ].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.rightweb.irc-online.org/groupwatch/cnp_body.html |title=Welcome - Political Research Associates - Right Web |publisher=Rightweb.irc-online.org |accessdate=2010-02-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100819185434/http://www.rightweb.irc-online.org/groupwatch/cnp_body.html |archive-date=2010-08-19 |url-status=dead }}</ref> In 1964 Moon founded the ], a ] agency which promoted the interests of ] and sponsored ]. Former ]s ], ], and ] were honorary presidents or directors at various times.<ref>{{cite news|title=Korean denies influence peddling|url=https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=2457&dat=19761102&id=y6kzAAAAIBAJ&sjid=yjgHAAAAIBAJ&pg=3422,903462|newspaper=Bangor Daily News|accessdate=21 March 2012}}</ref> The president of ] ] spoke at a Unification Church sponsored "]" which was held in ] October 31, 2009.<ref>, ], 2009-11-1</ref> | |||
| CNP's membership also overlaps significantly with that of the ], a coalition of conservative Christian organizations which spearheaded ballot initiatives banning gay marriage in thirty-two states in the 2000s;<ref>{{cite web |first=Doug |last=Ireland |author-link=Doug Ireland |url=http://www.publiceye.org/magazine/v20n2/ireland_gay_marriage.html |title=Back to the Future: GOP Revives Anti-Gay Marriage Campaign for '06 |via=] |work=] |date=Summer 2006 |access-date=2020-01-19}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.democraticunderground.org/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=221x34011 |title=Blackwell is darling of foes of gay marriage |publisher=Democratic Underground |date=2006-05-07 |access-date=2020-01-19}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|author=Sheryl Gay Stolberg |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2005/01/25/politics/backers-of-gay-marriage-ban-use-social-security-as-cudgel.html |title=Backers of Gay Marriage Ban Use Social Security as Cudgel |work=The New York Times |date=2005-01-25 |access-date=2020-01-19}}</ref> and with the second, third and fourth iterations of the ].{{citation needed|date=January 2020}} | |||
| ⚫ | CNP |
||
| In his June 1997 speech at a CNP meeting in Montreal, Quebec, then president of the ], ]—who later served as the ] from 2006 to 2015—said that the American "conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people and across the world."<ref name="HarperIndex_20070511">{{cite web |url=http://www.harperindex.ca/ViewArticle.cfm?Ref=0010 |title= National Citizens Coalition (NCC) – Harper's presidency was a critical period] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160303192928/http://www.harperindex.ca/ViewArticle.cfm?Ref=0010 |archive-date=March 3, 2016 |date=May 11, 2007 |work=The Harper Index}}</ref> | |||
| In 1999, a speech given to the CNP by Republican candidate ] is credited with helping him gain the support of conservatives in his successful bid for the ] in 2000. The content of the speech has never been released by the CNP or by Bush.<ref name="ReferenceA">ABC</ref> | In 1999, a speech given to the CNP by Republican candidate ] is credited with helping him gain the support of conservatives in his successful bid for the ] in 2000. The content of the speech has never been released by the CNP or by Bush.<ref name="ReferenceA">ABC</ref> | ||
| In February 2007, the organization planned to be involved in the 2008 presidential election campaign and actively sought candidate that would represent their views. ] ]<ref>{{cite news | |||
| |url=http://origin.sltrib.com/ci_7028160 | |url=http://origin.sltrib.com/ci_7028160 | ||
| |title=VP Cheney makes quick trip to Utah to address secretive conservative policy group | |title=VP Cheney makes quick trip to Utah to address secretive conservative policy group | ||
| Line 53: | Line 58: | ||
| |date=2007-09-28}}</ref> and former Massachusetts governor ]<ref>{{cite magazine | |date=2007-09-28}}</ref> and former Massachusetts governor ]<ref>{{cite magazine | ||
| |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668472,00.html?xid=rss-topstories | |url=http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668472,00.html?xid=rss-topstories | ||
| |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080203083648/http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1668472,00.html?xid=rss-topstories | |||
| |url-status=dead | |||
| |archive-date=February 3, 2008 | |||
| |title=Still Looking For Mr. Right | |title=Still Looking For Mr. Right | ||
| |first=Nancy | |first=Nancy | ||
| |last=Gibbs | |last=Gibbs | ||
| |magazine=] | |magazine=] | ||
| |date=2007-10-05}}</ref> spoke at a four-day conference |
|date=2007-10-05}}</ref> spoke at a four-day conference that the council held in ], 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.<ref name="kxmb.com">"Christian Conservatives Vow To Back Third Party Candidate If Giuliani Wins GOP Nomination", Bismarck, SD CBS affiliate, http://www.kxmb.com/News/Nation/167321.asp {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071228120856/http://www.kxmb.com/News/Nation/167321.asp |date=2007-12-28 }}</ref> | ||
| On August 21, 2020, ] attended a CNP meeting where he gave a speech.<ref>{{citation |url=https://factba.se/transcript/donald-trump-speech-council-national-policy-arlington-august-21-2020 |author=Donald Trump| title=Speech by Donald Trump |location=Arlington |date=August 2020}}</ref> | |||
| On May 18, 2018 House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy, R-CA, gave a speech to the Council for National Policy detailing how the current political climate is, "increasingly belittling Christian conservatives for their beliefs and, as a result, they are 'forced out of the public square.'"<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.dailysignal.com/2018/05/24/rep-kevin-mccarthy-troubling-amazon-removed-christian-legal-group-from-its-charity-program/|title=Rep. Kevin McCarthy: 'Troubling' Amazon Removed Christian Legal Group From Its Charity Program|website=www.dailysignal.com|access-date=2018-08-02}}</ref> | |||
| In an October 14, 2020, ''Washington Post'' article, 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."<ref name="WaPo_OHarrow_20201014">{{Cite news| last = O'Harrow Jr.| first = Robert| title = Videos show closed-door sessions of leading conservative activists: 'Be not afraid of the accusations that you're a voter suppressor' | newspaper = The Washington Post| access-date = March 2, 2021| date = October 14, 2020| url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/investigations/council-national-policy-video/2020/10/14/367f24c2-f793-11ea-a510-f57d8ce76e11_story.html}}</ref> | |||
| == Leadership == | == Leadership == | ||
| CNP was founded in 1981 by |
CNP was founded in 1981 by Southern Baptist pastor Tim LaHaye, author of ] (1980) and the '']'' series of books. Other early participants have included ], a ] within ] and founder of the ]; ]; ]; ]; ], a former Republican affiliated with the ]; ], the direct-mail specialist; and ], a ] and ] activist who is considered a specialist on the rules of the Republican Party.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.au.org/site/News2?page=NewsArticle&id=6949&abbr=cs_|title=Home - Americans United|website=www.au.org}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nndb.com/org/700/000051547/|title=Council for National Policy|website=www.nndb.com}}</ref><ref name="thefreelibrary.com">{{cite web|url=http://www.thefreelibrary.com/Behind+closed+doors:+who+is+the+council+for+national+policy+and+what...-a0123708159|title=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|website=www.thefreelibrary.com}}</ref> | ||
| The council |
The council's first executive director was ]; later, Morton Blackwell and Bob Reccord served in this role. Organization presidents have included ] of ], Amway co-founder ] of ], ] of ], retired Judge ] of ], former Reagan Cabinet secretaries ] and ], former Reagan advisor and President of the ] ], ] president ], and current President (as of 2014) ], founder of the ].<ref name="thefreelibrary.com"/><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.seekgod.ca/cnp.ijk.htm|title=Council for National Policy (CNP) - I - J - K - Member Biographies|website=www.seekgod.ca}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.seekgod.ca/cnpexecutives.htm|title=Council for National Policy Executives & Members|website=www.seekgod.ca|access-date=2007-10-08|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070620104504/http://www.seekgod.ca/cnpexecutives.htm|archive-date=2007-06-20|url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.frc.org/content/tony-perkins-president |title=Tony Perkins, President |publisher=Family Research Council |date=2003-08-21 |access-date=2020-01-19}}</ref> | ||
| == See also == | == See also == | ||
| {{portal|Conservatism}} | |||
| *] | |||
| *] | * ] | ||
| ⚫ | * ] | ||
| * Shawn D. Akers | |||
| ⚫ | * ] | ||
| ⚫ | *] | ||
| ⚫ | * ] | ||
| *Mark M. Alexander <!-- --> | |||
| *] | * ] | ||
| * ] | |||
| *Erin Anderson | |||
| * ] | |||
| ⚫ | *] | ||
| * ] | |||
| ⚫ | *] | ||
| *Edward G. Atsinger III | |||
| ==Further reading== | |||
| *Peter Gemma | |||
| * {{cite book | last=Nelson | first=Anne |author-link=Anne Nelson| title=Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right | publisher=Bloomsbury Publishing | location=New York | year=2019 | isbn=978-1-63557-319-0 | oclc=1126560275}} | |||
| *{{cite podcast |host=Katie Thornton|date=November 22, 2022| title=The Divided Dial: Episode 2 - From Pulpit to Politics - On the Media | website=WNYC Studios | url=https://www.wnycstudios.org/podcasts/otm/episodes/divided-dial-episode-2-pews-polls | access-date=November 26, 2022}} | |||
| == References == | == References == | ||
| {{reflist| |
{{reflist|30em}} | ||
| ==External links== | ==External links== | ||
| * {{Official website|https://cfnp.org/}} | |||
| * | |||
| * {{ProPublicaNonprofitExplorer|720921017}} | |||
| * , redacted and released by the ] | |||
| {{Conservatism US footer}} | |||
| {{Conservatism footer}} | |||
| {{Authority control}} | |||
| {{WikidataCoord}} | |||
| {{DEFAULTSORT:Council For National Policy}} | {{DEFAULTSORT:Council For National Policy}} | ||
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Latest revision as of 20:03, 12 December 2024
US nonprofit conservative organization Not to be confused with National Policy Institute. | |
| Abbreviation | CNP |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1981 |
| Type | Public policy think tank |
| Website | cfnp |
The Council for National Policy (CNP) is an umbrella organization and networking group that advocates for conservative and Republican Party initiatives in the United States. It was launched in 1981 during the Reagan administration by Tim LaHaye and the Christian right, to "bring more focus and force to conservative advocacy". 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.
The CNP has been described by The New York Times as "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. The Nation has called it a secretive organization that "networks wealthy right-wing donors together with top conservative operatives to plan long-term movement strategy".
Meetings and membership
About the CNP, Marc Ambinder of ABC News said: "The group wants to be the conservative version of the Council on Foreign Relations." The CNP was founded in 1981. Among its founding members were: Tim LaHaye, then the head of the Moral Majority, Nelson Bunker Hunt, T. Cullen Davis, William Cies, Howard Phillips, and Paul Weyrich.
Members of the CNP have included General John Singlaub, shipping magnate J. Peter Grace, Edwin Feulner of The Heritage Foundation, Rev. Pat Robertson of the Christian Broadcasting Network, Jerry Falwell, U.S. Senator Trent Lott, Southern Baptist Convention activists and retired Texas Court of Appeals Judge Paul Pressler, lawyer and paleoconservative activist Michael Peroutka, Reverend Paige Patterson, Senator Don Nickles, former United States Attorneys General Edwin Meese and John Ashcroft, gun-rights activist Larry Pratt, Colonel Oliver North, Steve Bannon, Kellyanne Conway, philanthropist Elsa Prince (mother of Blackwater founder and former CEO Erik Prince and Trump Administration Secretary of Education Betsy Devos), Leonard Leo, Virginia Thomas (wife of Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas). Former California State Assemblyman Steve Baldwin was CNP's executive director from 2000 to 2008. Conservative attorney Cleta Mitchell sits on the board of governors for the organization.
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. The New York Times political 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." 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. 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 the IRS in 1992 on grounds that it was not an organization run for the public benefit. The group successfully challenged this ruling in federal court.
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, legislators, former high ranking government officers, leaders of 'think tanks' dedicated to molding society and those whom many view as "Christian leadership".
In May 2016, the Southern Poverty Law Center released a leaked copy of the membership directory for 2014.
A membership list for September 2020, leaked a year later, included Jerome Corsi, Michael Farris, Brigitte Gabriel, Frank Gaffney, Charlie Kirk, Tony Perkins, and Mathew Staver.
Conferences and political plans
Leading members of the CNP voted in a meeting at the Grand America Hotel in Salt Lake City, on September 29, 2007, to consider launching a third party candidate if the 2008 Republican nominee were pro-choice. (The candidacy of former New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani, who held liberal opinions on social issues such as abortion, gay rights and gun ownership, had disturbed the Christian 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, including James Dobson, Richard Viguerie, Tony Perkins and Morton Blackwell.
CNP has membership links to the Committee for the Free World, whose many other members included, among others, some members of the Unification Church of the United States, some Republican Party leaders, and counter-revolutionaries in Latin America, particularly during the 1980s. Midge Decter served as Executive Director of its committee. Other members included Jeane Kirkpatrick, Leszek Kołakowski, Irving Kristol, Melvin J. Lasky, Seymour M. Lipset, Donald Rumsfeld, Tom Stoppard and George Will. Eugene V. Rostow, then serving as Director of the Arms Control and Disarmament Agency under President Ronald Reagan, was a speaker at a CFW event on Poland.
CNP's membership also overlaps significantly with that of the Arlington Group, a coalition of conservative Christian organizations which spearheaded ballot initiatives banning gay marriage in thirty-two states in the 2000s; and with the second, third and fourth iterations of the Committee on the Present Danger.
In his June 1997 speech at a CNP meeting in Montreal, Quebec, then president of the National Citizens' Coalition, Stephen Harper—who later served as the prime minister of Canada from 2006 to 2015—said that the American "conservative movement, is a light and an inspiration to people and across the world."
In 1999, a speech given to the CNP by Republican candidate George W. Bush is credited with helping him gain the support of conservatives in his successful bid for the United States Presidency in 2000. The content of the speech has never been released by the CNP or by Bush.
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 President Dick Cheney and former Massachusetts governor Mitt Romney spoke at a four-day conference that the council held in Salt 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.
On August 21, 2020, President Trump attended a CNP meeting where he gave a speech.
In an October 14, 2020, Washington Post article, 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."
Leadership
CNP was founded in 1981 by Southern Baptist pastor Tim LaHaye, author of The Battle for the Mind (1980) and the Left Behind series of books. Other early participants have included W. Cleon Skousen, a theologian within the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints and founder of the Freemen Institute; Paul Weyrich; Phyllis Schlafly; Robert Grant; Howard Phillips, a former Republican affiliated with the Constitution Party; Richard Viguerie, the direct-mail specialist; and Morton Blackwell, a Louisiana and Virginia activist who is considered a specialist on the rules of the Republican Party.
The council's first executive director was Woody Jenkins; later, Morton Blackwell and Bob Reccord served in this role. Organization presidents have included Nelson Bunker Hunt of Dallas, Amway co-founder Richard DeVos of Michigan, Pat Robertson of Virginia Beach, retired Judge Paul Pressler of Houston, former Reagan Cabinet secretaries Edwin Meese and Donald Hodel, former Reagan advisor and President of the Intercollegiate Studies Institute Kenneth Cribb, Family Research Council president Tony Perkins, and current President (as of 2014) Stuart Epperson, founder of the Salem Media Group.
See also
- Joe Aguillard
- Gary Aldrich
- John K. Andrews Jr.
- Larry P. Arnn
- Cleta Mitchell
- Lowell C. Smith
- 2020 presidential election and the "Pence Card" scheme
- Ginni Thomas' efforts to overturn the 2020 presidential election
Further reading
- Nelson, Anne (2019). Shadow Network: Media, Money, and the Secret Hub of the Radical Right. New York: Bloomsbury Publishing. ISBN 978-1-63557-319-0. OCLC 1126560275.
- Katie Thornton (November 22, 2022). "The Divided Dial: Episode 2 - From Pulpit to Politics - On the Media". WNYC Studios (Podcast). Retrieved November 26, 2022.
References
- ^ O'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. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
- ^ Kirkpatrick, David D. (February 24, 2007). "Christian Right Labors to Find '08 Candidate". The New York Times. Washington, DC. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
- Nelson, Anne (2019). "Shadow Network". Bloomsbury Publishing. Retrieved 2019-11-09.
- ^ Wilson, Jason (30 September 2021). "Top Republicans rub shoulders with extremists in secretive rightwing group, leak reveals". The Guardian.
- ^ Kirkpatrick, David K. (August 28, 2004). "The 2004 Campaign: The Conservative; Club of the Most Powerful Gathers in Strictest Privacy". The New York Times. Retrieved March 2, 2021.
- Max Blumenthal, Secretive Right-Wing Group Vetted Palin Archived 2014-05-29 at the Wayback Machine thenation.com 09/01/2008
- "A History of Accomplishment". The Conservative Caucus. Retrieved 5 January 2019.
- Inside the Council for National Policy ABC News May 8, 2008
- Kirkpatrick, David D. (August 28, 2004). "The 2004 Campaign: The Conservatives; Club of the Most Powerful Gathers in Strictest Privacy". The New York Times.
- The War for Thee University, page 191. November 1991. Retrieved February 16, 2011.
{{cite book}}:|work=ignored (help) - "About Steve Baldwin". Archived from the original on 2016-03-06.
- 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. Archived from the original on June 10, 2022. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- Gibbs, Nancy; Duffy, Michael (October 4, 2007). "Still Looking for Mr. Right". Time. Archived from the original on October 10, 2007.
- ^ Adam Clymer, "Conservatives Gather in Umbrella Council for a National Policy", The New York Times, May 20, 1981
- "The Council for National Policy: Behind the Curtain | Southern Poverty Law Center". Retrieved May 19, 2020.
- Berlet, Chip (2018). Trumping democracy in the United States : from Ronald Reagan to alt-right. London: Routledge. ISBN 978-1-315-43839-9. OCLC 1129904664.
- 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.
- Martin, Jonathan (2007-09-30). "Social conservatives may back 3rd party over Rudy". POLITICO.com. Retrieved 2016-04-30.
- Scherer, Michael (2007-09-30). "Religious right may blackball Giuliani". Salon. Retrieved 2016-04-30.
- "Committee for the Free World - Political Research Associates - Right Web". Rightweb.irc-online.org. 7 January 1989. Retrieved 2010-02-20.
- "Board of Trustees".
- "Midge Decter". National Endowment for the Humanities.
- Decter, Midge (2001). An old wife's tale : my seven decades in love and war. New York: Regan Books. ISBN 978-0-06-039428-8. OCLC 46421841.
- Judith Miller, Arms control chief asserts Reagan is uncertain how to use power, The New York Times, January 23, 1982
- Ireland, Doug (Summer 2006). "Back to the Future: GOP Revives Anti-Gay Marriage Campaign for '06". The Public Eye Magazine. Retrieved 2020-01-19 – via Political Research Associates.
- "Blackwell is darling of foes of gay marriage". Democratic Underground. 2006-05-07. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
- Sheryl Gay Stolberg (2005-01-25). "Backers of Gay Marriage Ban Use Social Security as Cudgel". The New York Times. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
- "National Citizens Coalition (NCC) – Harper's presidency was a critical period]". The Harper Index. May 11, 2007. Archived from the original on March 3, 2016.
- ABC
- Gonzalez, Nathan C. (2007-09-28). "VP Cheney makes quick trip to Utah to address secretive conservative policy group". Salt Lake Tribune.
- Gibbs, Nancy (2007-10-05). "Still Looking For Mr. Right". Time. Archived from the original on February 3, 2008.
- "Christian Conservatives Vow To Back Third Party Candidate If Giuliani Wins GOP Nomination", Bismarck, SD CBS affiliate, http://www.kxmb.com/News/Nation/167321.asp Archived 2007-12-28 at the Wayback Machine
- Donald Trump (August 2020), Speech by Donald Trump, Arlington
{{citation}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - "Home - Americans United". www.au.org.
- "Council for National Policy". www.nndb.com.
- ^ "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". www.thefreelibrary.com.
- "Council for National Policy (CNP) - I - J - K - Member Biographies". www.seekgod.ca.
- "Council for National Policy Executives & Members". www.seekgod.ca. Archived from the original on 2007-06-20. Retrieved 2007-10-08.
- "Tony Perkins, President". Family Research Council. 2003-08-21. Retrieved 2020-01-19.
External links
- Official website
- "Council for National Policy Internal Revenue Service filings". ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.
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Categories:- 1981 establishments in the United States
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