Leadership for America; The Principles of Conservatism

Inscribed by editor on half-title. xxv,[1], 317, [1] pages. Index. The Heritage Foundation is an American conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. The foundation took a leading role in the conservative movement during the presidency of Ronald Reagan, whose policies were taken from Heritage's policy study Mandate for Leadership. Heritage has since continued to have a significant influence in U.S. public policy making, and is considered to be one of the most influential conservative research organizations in the United States. According to the 2014 Global Go To Think Tank Index Report , Heritage is number 17 (of 150) in the "Top Think Tanks Worldwide" and number 9 (of 60) in the "Top Think Tanks in the United States". On November 1, 2007, President George W. Bush visited Heritage to defend his appointment of Michael Mukasey to succeed Alberto Gonzales as Attorney General of the United States; Mukasey's nomination faced opposition in the U.S. Senate over the nominee's refusal to label the interrogation tactic of waterboarding as illegal. Mukasey was confirmed and became Attorney General eight days later. Several Heritage Foundation personnel have served, or gone on to serve, in senior governmental roles, including:Richard V. Allen, L. Paul Bremer, Elaine Chao, Lawrence Di Rita, Michael Johns, John Lehman, Edwin Meese, and Steve Ritchie. Edwin John "Ed" Feulner, Jr. (born August 12, 1941) is the former president of the conservative think tank, The Heritage Foundation. He served as President from 1977 to 2013. His replacement, former U.S. Senator Jim DeMint, was named successor in late 2012 and took over as president on April 3, 2013. Dr. Feulner is widely credited with establishing the The Heritage Foundation as the most dynamic and far-reaching public policy research organization in the world. According to the Heritage Foundation, its 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." Feulner was a Founding Trustee of the Heritage Foundation from 1973 until he left Representative Crane's office to run the Heritage Foundation full-time in 1977. Prior to 1977, the Foundation had nine employees and went through a bit of a rough patch with four presidents in four years. Once Feulner became President he changed the direction of the Heritage Foundation. He wanted to run a business, not a research center made up of academics that would publish studies and hope that they would one day be read. He wanted Heritage to be aggressive and expected progress from its analysts and their results by creating easily accessed, concise studies. Feulner brought a new focus to the marketing of the Heritage Foundation and would transform the foundation from a small policy think tank into a booming enterprise of conservative ideals, eventually creating the think tank the New York Times calls "the Parthenon of the conservative metropolis." This new marketing strategy was called the "briefcase test." A concept which revolutionized the abilities of think tanks and their influence on public policy. It was essentially the ability to create easily accessed, timely, concise research that was able to fit in a briefcase. Not only was the "briefcase test" essential to Heritage's popularity, but Heritage also promoted publishing policy reports and papers before legislation concerning those policies had been passed through Congress. The practice was unusual for Washington think tanks in the 1970s, who usually published such research after legislation had been passed, and brought national attention to the Heritage Foundation. As Feulner related to The Washington Examiner, "It doesn't do us any good to have great ideas if we are not out there peddling our products." Since the 1970s the Heritage Foundation has been a beacon of liberal hope. Heritage's political success has inspired many liberals to parta.