Abbreviation | LI |
---|---|
Formation | 1979 |
Founder | Morton Blackwell |
Founded at | Arlington, VA |
Type | nonprofit |
51-0235174 | |
Legal status | 501(c)(3) |
Purpose | education |
Headquarters |
|
Region served | United States |
President | Morton Blackwell |
Chairman | Morton Blackwell |
Revenue (2020) | $23,638,240 [1] |
Expenses (2020) | $20,433,534 [1] |
Website | leadershipinstitute |
This article is part of a series on |
Conservatism in the United States |
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The Leadership Institute is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located in Arlington, Virginia that teaches "political technology." [2] The institute was founded in 1979 by conservative activist Morton Blackwell. Its mission is to "increase the number and effectiveness of conservative activists" and to "identify, train, recruit and place conservatives in politics, government, and media." [3]
The Leadership Institute offers 44 types of training seminars at its Arlington headquarters, around the United States, and occasionally in foreign countries. [4] In 2014, the Institute trained 18,182. [5] Since its 1979 founding, the Leadership Institute has trained more than 161,271 students. Alumni include Grover Norquist, Ralph Reed, Jeff Gannon, Senator Mitch McConnell, Vice-President Mike Pence, James O'Keefe, new members of the 113th Congress, and elected officials in all 50 states. [6]
The Leadership Institute's mission is to increase the number and effectiveness of conservative activists and leaders in the public policy process. To accomplish this, the Institute identifies, recruits, trains, and places conservatives in government, politics, and the media. [7]
Founded in 1979 by its president, Morton C. Blackwell, the Leadership Institute (LI) teaches conservatives the nuts and bolts of how to succeed in the public policy process. The Institute strives to produce a new generation of public policy leaders unwavering in their commitment to free enterprise, limited government, strong national defense, and traditional values. Institute graduates are equipped with practical skills and professional training to implement sound principles through effective public policy. [8]
The Leadership Institute is a member of the advisory board of Project 2025, [9] a collection of conservative and right-wing policy proposals from the Heritage Foundation to reshape the United States federal government and consolidate executive power should the Republican nominee win the 2024 presidential election. [10]
Campus Reform is LI's news website focused on higher education. The online publication's news offerings often highlight incidents of what it considers to be liberal bias on American college campuses. [11]
The Federalist Society for Law and Public Policy Studies (FedSoc) is an American conservative and libertarian legal organization that advocates for a textualist and originalist interpretation of the U.S. Constitution. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., it has chapters at more than 200 law schools and features student, lawyer, and faculty divisions; the lawyers division comprises more than 70,000 practicing attorneys in ninety cities. Through speaking events, lectures, and other activities, it provides a forum for legal experts of opposing conservative views to interact with members of the legal profession, the judiciary, and the legal academy. It is one of the most influential legal organizations in the United States.
Grover Glenn Norquist is an American political activist and tax reduction advocate who is founder and president of Americans for Tax Reform, an organization that opposes all tax increases. A Republican, he is the primary promoter of the Taxpayer Protection Pledge, a pledge signed by lawmakers who agree to oppose increases in marginal income tax rates for individuals and businesses, and net reductions or eliminations of deductions and credits without a matching reduced tax rate. Prior to the November 2012 election, the pledge was signed by 95% of all Republican members of Congress and all but one of the candidates running for the 2012 Republican presidential nomination.
The Heritage Foundation, sometimes referred to simply as Heritage, is an activist American conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1973, it took a leading role in the conservative movement in the 1980s during the presidency of Ronald Reagan, whose policies were taken from Heritage Foundation studies, including its Mandate for Leadership.
Bruce Kerry Chapman is the founder and current chairman of the board of the Discovery Institute, an American conservative think tank often associated with the religious right. He was previously a journalist, a Republican politician, and a diplomat. He is the author, most recently, of Politicians: The Worst Kind of People to Run the Government, Except for All the Others.
The Claremont Institute is a conservative think tank based in Upland, California. The institute was founded in 1979 by four students of Harry V. Jaffa. It produces the Claremont Review of Books,The American Mind, and other publications.
The Council for National Policy (CNP) is an umbrella organization and networking group for conservative and Republican activists in the United States. Its ultimate goal is to establish a Christian autocracy in the United States of America. 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, wealthy entrepreneurs, and media proprietors, together with anti-abortion and anti-Islamic extremists. Members are instructed not to reveal their membership or even name the group.
The National Federation of Republican Assemblies (NFRA) is a political organization which promotes conservative principles and candidates within the Republican Party. Members at the local, state and national levels work to recruit and elect Republican candidates who reflect the Party's conservative philosophy, and to oppose so-called "RINOs", leaders and candidates who take positions to the left of the party's conservative mainstream.
The Foreign Service Institute (FSI) is the United States federal government's primary training institution for members of the U.S. foreign service community, preparing American diplomats as well as other professionals to advance U.S. foreign policy objectives overseas and in Washington. FSI provides more than 800 courses—including up to 70 foreign languages—to more than 225,000 enrollees a year from the U.S. Department of State and more than 50 other government agencies and the military service branches. FSI is based at the George P. Shultz National Foreign Affairs Training Center in Arlington, Virginia.
Young America's Foundation (YAF) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit conservative youth organization founded in 1969. In 2018, the Los Angeles Times called YAF "one of the most preeminent, influential and controversial forces in the nation's conservative youth movement." Scott Walker, former governor of Wisconsin and 2016 Republican presidential candidate, became President of YAF on February 1, 2021.
Morton C. Blackwell is an American conservative activist. He is the founder and president of the Leadership Institute, a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational foundation that teaches political technology to conservative activists. He currently serves as Virginia's national committeeman on the Republican National Committee.
Capital Research Center (CRC) is an American conservative 501(c)(3) non-profit organization located in Washington, D.C. Its stated purpose is "to study non-profit organizations, with a special focus on reviving the American traditions of charity, philanthropy, and voluntarism." According to The Washington Post, it also discourages donations by corporations and non-profits supporting what it sees as liberal or anti-business policies. It monitors the giving of major liberal donors in the U.S.
The Campaign for Liberty (C4L) is a political organization founded by twelve-term United States Congressman Ron Paul. Campaign for Liberty focuses on educating elected officials and the general public about constitutional issues, and currently provides a membership program. Its legal status is that of a 501(c)(4) nonprofit.
American Majority is a nonprofit organization that provides training to conservative activists and political candidates in the United States. Registered as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, American Majority says that it "is dedicated to developing a new generation of American leadership that will reject the self-destructive policies associated with government expansion."
The State Policy Network (SPN) is a nonprofit organization that serves as a network for conservative and libertarian think tanks focusing on state-level policy in the United States. The network serves as a public policy clearinghouse and advises its member think tanks on fundraising, running a nonprofit, and communicating ideas. Founded in 1992, it is headquartered in Arlington, Virginia, with member groups located in all fifty states.
Kevin Gentry is a conservative political activist and fundraiser who serves as vice president of the Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation. A top aide to Charles Koch and David H. Koch, Gentry serves as vice president of special projects at Koch Industries.
The R Street Institute is an American center-right think tank headquartered in Washington, D.C. The institute's stated mission is to "engage in policy research and outreach to promote free markets and limited, effective government." R Street was established in 2012 when its founders split from the Heartland Institute out of disagreement with Heartland's public denial of the scientific consensus on climate change. It has branch offices across the U.S.
Turning Point USA (TPUSA) is an American nonprofit organization that advocates for conservative politics on high school, college, and university campuses. It was founded in 2012 by Charlie Kirk and Bill Montgomery. TPUSA's affiliate groups include Turning Point Endowment, Turning Point Action and TPUSA Faith. TPUSA has been described as the fastest growing organization of campus chapters in America, and according to The Chronicle of Higher Education, is the dominant force in campus conservatism.
The Illinois Policy Institute(IPI) a free market nonprofit think tank with offices in Chicago and Springfield. Founded in 2002, it is active in the areas of education policy, pension policy, and state budget issues. IPI advocates for smaller government and lower taxes. It has an affiliated lobbying arm and legal arm. IPI is a member of the State Policy Network, a consortium of free-market think tanks in the U.S.
The Conservative Partnership Institute (CPI) is a United States-based conservative nonprofit organization. The stated purpose of CPI is the professional development of conservative staffers and elected officials. Under the leadership of Mark Meadows, since 2017 the nonprofit has grown sixfold to become the "nerve center" of the MAGA movement, bolstering notable figures such as U.S. Representatives Marjorie Taylor Greene and Lauren Boebert, according to The Washington Post. The group has also held numerous "election integrity" summits in battleground states, advocating for changes to voting rules that will favor Republican candidates.
Most important, in its view, it had scored 15 "victories" — a term it applies to any situation in which a college changes a policy, fires someone, or otherwise responds to concerns raised by the reporting on its site.