Right Moves: The Conservative Think Tank in American Political Culture since 1945

263 Pages·2016·4.073 MB·English

by  Jason Stahl

Right Moves
This page intentionally left blank
Right Moves
The Conservative Think Tank in
American Pol iti cal Culture since 1945
Jason Stahl
The University of North Carolina Press Chapel Hill
This book was published with the assistance of the
Thornton H. Brooks Fund of the University of North Carolina Press.
© 2016 The University of North Carolina Press
All rights reserved
Set in Espinosa Nova and Alegreya Sans by Westchester Publishing Serv ices
Manufactured in the United States of Ameri ca
The paper in this book meets the guidelines for permanence and durability
of the Committee on Production Guidelines for Book Longevity of the
Council on Library Resources. The University of North Carolina Press
has been a member of the Green Press Initiative since 2003.
Library of Congress Cataloging-i n-P ublication Data
Stahl, Jason, author.
Right moves : the conservative think tank in American po liti cal culture
since 1945 / Jason Stahl.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-1-4696-2786-1 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-1-4696-2787-8 (ebook)
1. Conservatism— United States— History—20th century. 2. Conservatism—
United States— History—21st century. 3. Research institutes— United States—
History. 4. Po liti cal culture—U nited States. 5. United States— Politics and
government—1945–1989. 6. United States—P olitics and government—1989-
I. Title.
JC573.2.U6S73 2016
320.520973—d c23
2015028433
For Elliot and Corinne
This page intentionally left blank
Contents
Acknowl edgments ix
Introduction 1
1 The Think Tank in an Era of Liberal Consensus 7
2 Think Tanks in a Marketplace of Ideas 4 7
3 Think Tanks in the Age of Reagan 9 6
4 Think Tanks, New Democ rats, and Committed Conservatives 1 34
5 Think Tanks, Foreign Policy, and the Marketplace of Ideas
in the 2000s 1 74
Conclusion 1 98
Policy as Identity Politics
Notes 2 03
Selected Bibliography 233
Index 239
This page intentionally left blank
Acknowl edgments
I am honored to publish this book with the University of North Caro-
lina Press and am particularly thankful to my editor, Joe Parsons. Joe took
a chance on this proj ect and convinced the press to award an advance
contract when even I was not fully convinced it deserved one. Joe has
since been a tireless advocate for the proj ect every step of the way. He
and the entire press have been supportive of the vision I had for the book
throughout the pro cess. Joe also secured two fantastic readers for my
manuscript: Alice O’Connor and Andrew Hartman. Both Professor
O’Connor and Professor Hartman off ered the right mix of praise and
trenchant criticism. This book is imm ensely better b ecause of their read-
ings. I off er additional thanks to Professor Hartman, whose 2012 off er of
a guest post at the U.S. Intellectual History Blog led to my eventual book
contract with UNC Press.
I have been at the University of Minnesota for the last fi ft een years,
fi rst as a gradu ate student and now as a teacher. In my time h ere, I have
made friends across the university who have supported the creation of
this book in ways both large and small. First, to Ryan Murphy—a true
friend if t here ever was one. You have supported my personal and intel-
lectual growth unlike anyone I have ever known, and this book is better
for having known you. To Lary May and Elaine Tyler May for being the
best advisers and friends anyone could ask for. Your unwavering support
has sustained me over the past seven years. Thanks to Sarah Crabtree
for your friendship, wit, and intelligence, and thanks to Kevin Murphy for
your friendship and support when I needed it most. Thank you to Jeff
Manuel for your friendship and your ability to get me to think about
my work in new ways. Thank you to Pam Butler and Mark Soderstrom
for your support and friendship. Thank you to Melissa Williams, Megan
Feeney, Danny LaChance, and others from the May House Reading
Group. You all asked the right questions about this proje ct when it was
still in its infancy. Thank you to other mentors and committee mem-
bers I had while a gradua te student at the U of M, including J. B. Shank,
Karen Ho, Keith Mayes, Timothy Brennan, and Lisa Norling. Special
thanks to Barbara Welke—a nother mentor and committee member who
ix