Foundation for the Defense of Democracies

The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD) is a neoconservative think tank aand lobbying organization that claims to conduct "research and education on international terrorism &mdash; the most serious security threat to the United States and other free, democratic nations. FDD produces independent analyses of global terrorist threats, as well as of the historical, cultural, philosophical and ideological factors that drive terrorism, and which threaten democracies and the individual freedoms guaranteed within democratic societies." Their work is closely linked with that of the National Endowment for Democracy. FDD was created two days after the September 11, 2001, attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. Ever since its creation, FDD has pushed for US wars against Iraq and Iran – Eli Clifton states that "In recent years, FDD has become one of the the premiere DC organizations promoting more aggressive actions against Iran." Clifton adds:
 * "While FDD has a 10-year history of engaging in alarmist rhetoric and fear mongering — e.g. in 2002 FDD aired a series of ads conflating Osama bin Laden, Yasser Arafat and Saddam Hussein — and helped promote the “Bush doctrine” which led to the invasion of Iraq, its donors have, for the most part, hidden behind their anonymous contributions to the organization. The new documents should permit for greater scrutiny of the interests and individuals behind FDD’s hawkish presence in the Washington think tank world."

FDD run the Long War Journal.

Origins of FDD
Daniel McCarthy expressed an enhanced view of FDD's origins in the November 17, 2003, issue of The American Conservative.


 * In early 2001, a tightly knit group of billionaire philanthropists conceived of a plan to win American sympathy for Israel's response to the Palestinian intifada. They believed that the Palestinian cause was finding too much support within crucial segments of the American public, particularly within the media and on college campuses, so they set up an organization, Emet: An Educational Initiative, Inc., to offer Israel the kind of PR that the Israeli government seemed unable to provide itself.


 * At first, Emet floundered, without an executive director or a well-defined mission. But that changed after Sept. 11, and Emet changed too, into what is now the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies. The name is different, but the goal of influencing America's opinion-forming classes remains.


 * What makes all of this possible is the support the foundation receives from its billionaire backers. Its nearly $3 million annual budget comes from 27 major donors, most of whom are members of "the Study Group"--also sometimes called the "Mega Group" because of their sizeable contributions--a semi-formal organization of major Jewish philanthropists who meet twice a year to discuss joint projects.


 * Leonard Abramson was the point man for establishing Emet. He, Michael Steinhardt, and Edgar Bronfman were the foundation's board of directors at the time of its incorporation in the spring of 2001.

Funding Sources
Eli Clifton reports that the following billionaires/millionaires are the principal source of FDD funding :
 * Edgar M. Bronfman
 * Charles Bronfman
 * Michael Steinhardt
 * Haim Saban
 * Bernard Marcus
 * Dalck Feith
 * Abramson Family Foundation
 * Lewis Ranieri
 * Roland Arnall
 * Jennifer Mizrahi
 * Clifford May

A Critical Assessment of the FDD
According to Jeffrey Blankfort, a Jewish anti-Zionist activist in California (former editor of the Middle East Labor Review, and victim of a spying operation directed against him by the ADL), the FDD:
 * For those of you who haven't heard of this "foundation," it is one of the most influential and powerful of the Zionist lobbies which changed its name and sprung into action immediately after 9-11.  If you check its board, its advisors, you'll find a lot of familiar names, the neocons, of course, and some surprises, like the Democrat's ranking African-American spokesperson, Donna Brazile. It claims to have seven articles from FDD sources appear in the mainstream media every day and if you check its site, that appears to be the truth. That President Bush chose this group for the first of a series of speeches defending his Iraq policy is not an accident but a genuflection to the FDD's power.  Another reflection of its power is the apparent unwillingness of the major media, such as the NY Times, to identify it for what it is.

Jeffrey Blankfort suggests that the best assessment of FDD is that it is the successor of PNAC, as many of the PNAC-associated neocons now reside at the FDD.

President Bush's address to FDD
On March 13, 2006, President George W. Bush addressed the FDD on the war in Iraq.

Non-partisan, non-ideological
The FDD states the following on its website:
 * "FDD is a tax-exempt, non-profit, non-partisan, non-ideological institution. We do not seek to advance any political party or views."

The tax-exempt and non-profit claims are true. However, the non-partisan and non-ideological assertions are very suspect.

Directors, Fellows, Personnel
The following information was updated August 16, 2007.

Board of Directors

 * Steve Forbes, Board Member; CEO Forbes Magazine (site bio)
 * Jeane J. Kirkpatrick (deceased), Board Member; Former Ambassador to the UN (site bio)
 * Jack Kemp, Chairman Emeritus; Former Secretary of Housing and Urban Development (site bio)

Distinguished Advisors

 * Judge Louis J. Freeh, Former Director of the FBI (site bio)
 * R. James Woolsey, Former Director of the CIA (site bio)
 * Newt Gingrich, Former. Speaker of the House (site bio)
 * Joe Lieberman, US Senator (D-CT) (site bio)

Board of Advisors

 * Gary Bauer, President, American Values (site bio)
 * Donna Brazile, Campaign Manager Gore 2000 (site bio)
 * Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA), Task Force on Terrorism Chairman (site bio)
 * Rep. Eliot Engel (D-NY), U.S. House of Representatives (site bio)
 * Frank Gaffney, President, Center for Security Policy (site bio)
 * Amb. Marc Ginsberg, Former Ambassador Morroco (site bio)
 * Charles Jacobs, President, American Anti-Slavery Group (site bio)
 * Charles Krauthammer, Syndicated Columnist (site bio)
 * Bill Kristol, Editor, Weekly Standard (site bio)
 * Hon. Richard D. Lamm, Former Colorado Governor (site bio)
 * Rep. Jim Marshall (D-GA), U.S. House of Representatives (site bio)
 * Sen. Zell Miller, Former U.S. Senator (site bio)
 * Richard Perle, Former Chair of the Defense Policy Board and FDD Advisor (site bio)
 * Steven Pomerantz, Former Assistant Director FBI
 * Oliver "Buck" Revell, Former Associate Deputy Director FBI
 * Sen. Charles E. Schumer (D-NY), U.S. Senate (site bio)

Previously listed

 * Rep. Mark Foley (R-FL), U.S. House of Representatives (site bio)
 * Rep. J.D. Hayworth (R-AZ), U.S. House of Representatives (site bio)
 * Sen. Frank Lautenberg (D-NJ), U.S. Senate (site bio)

Senior Fellows

 * Khairi Abaza, Middle East and Democracy Expert (site bio)
 * Avi Jorisch, Terrorism Expert (site bio)
 * Samer Libdeh, Middle East and Democracy Expert (site bio)
 * Mario Loyola, Visiting Fellow: Diplomacy and Defense
 * Andrew C. McCarthy, Legal Commentator, Terrorism Expert (site bio)
 * Barbara Newman, Investigative Reporter and Author (site bio)
 * Walid Phares, Florida Atlantic University Professor (site bio)
 * Victoria Toensing, Fmr. Chief Counsel to Sen. Intelligence Committee (site bio)
 * Emanuele Ottolenghi

Adjunct Fellows

 * Dr. Jonathan Adelman, University of Denver Professor (site bio)
 * Richard Z. Chesnoff, Journalist (site bio)
 * Paul Crespo, Former Marine Corps Officer and Military Attaché (site bio)
 * Tanya Gilly, Member of the Iraqi National Assembly (site bio)
 * Orde Kittrie, Arizona State University Law Professor (site bio)
 * Michael I. Krauss, Professor of Law, George Mason University School of Law (site bio)
 * Agota Kuperman, U.S. Foreign Service (ret.) (site bio)
 * Dr. J. Peter Pham, Director of the Nelson Institute for International and Public Affairs, James Madison University (site bio)
 * Dr. Frederic Smoler, Sarah Lawrence College Professor (site bio)

Previously listed

 * Dr. Mohammed Akacem, Metropolitan State College of Denver Professor (site bio)
 * Jess Sadick, U.S. government Terrorism Specialist (site bio)
 * Jan Ting, Temple University Law Professor (site bio)

Staff

 * Tony Badran, Research Fellow, Levant
 * Karen Buck, VP of Development, FDD
 * Richard W. Carlson, Vice Chairman
 * Mark Dubowitz, Chief Operating Officer
 * Daveed Gartenstein-Ross, VP of Research, FDD
 * Joshua Goodman, Manager, Research, FDD
 * Jonathan Schanzer, VP of Research, FDD
 * Eleana Gordon, Senior VP
 * Veronica Machtey, New Project Development Coordinator, FDD
 * Clifford D. May, President; Former Director
 * Bill McCarthy, VP, Communications
 * Cara Rosenthal, Senior Manager, Donor Relations
 * Claudia Rosett, Journalist-in-Residence
 * Stephanie Schwartz, Communications and Special Projects Coordinator, The Center for Liberty in the Middle East
 * David Silverstein, VP, Campus Education & Grassroots Programs
 * Jonathan L. Snow, Manager, Research
 * Jean Thurman, Manager, Operations
 * Caitlyn Walters, Coordinator, Campus Programs
 * Brian Wise, Director of Media Relations, FDD
 * Adela A. Zachariades, Coordinator, Future of Terrorism Project, FDD

Affiliations

 * Coalition for the Defense of Human Rights – member.

Contact information
Foundation for the Defense of Democracies P.O. Box 33249 Washington D.C. 20033 Phone: 202 207-0190 FAX: 202 207-01915 Website: www.defenddemocracy.org Weblog: http://fdd.typepad.com/ Email: info AT defenddemocracy.org

Related SourceWatch articles

 * American Islamic Congress
 * Committee on the Present Danger
 * Henry Jackson Society
 * Iraq Foundation
 * Post-war Iraq
 * Project for the New American Century
 * Women for a Free Iraq

2003

 * Daniel McCarthy, "Most Favored Democracy; The Foundation for the Defense of Democracies goes on offense," The American Conservative, November 17, 2003.

2004

 * Tom Barry, "Cold War Liberals Together Again," Foreign Policy in Focus (LewRockwell.com), February 12, 2004.
 * News Release: "Foundation for the Defense of Democracies to Hold Conference on 'Iraq's Future and the War on Terrorism' on June 16," U.S. Newswire, June 15, 2004.
 * Joe Lieberman, "Iraq's Future and the War on Terrorism." Remarks (as prepared for delivery) to the Symposium Sponsored by the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies and the Committee on the Present Danger, Mayflower Hotel, Washington, DC, June 16, 2004. Also here.
 * Tom Barry, "US: Danger, danger everywhere," Asia Times, June 23, 2004.
 * James Kirchick, "Cold warriors return for war on terrorism," The Hill, June 30, 2004.
 * Jim Lobe, "They're Back: Neocons Revive. the Committee on the Present Danger, This Time against Terrorism," Foreign Policy in Focus, July 21, 2004; LewRockwell.com; Common Dreams and Asia Times, July 22, 2004; TomPaine.com, July 23, 2004.
 * Justin Raimondo, "The Present Danger. Neocons attempt a comeback," antiwar.com, July 23, 2004.
 * Matthew Yglesias, "Present Dangers. Neoconservative dead-enders regroup and start plotting their comeback," The American Prospect Online, July 27, 2004.
 * Katrina Vanden Heuvel, "Of Hawks and Hacks," The Nation, August 8, 2004.
 * Laura Rozen, War and Piece for August 25, 2004.
 * Steven C. Clemons, "Woolsey Watch: Mongering for World War IV?" The Washington Note, September 14, 2004.
 * Dep. Secty. of Defense Paul Wolfowitz, "Speech to the Committee on the Present Danger and the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies," Mayflower Hotel, Washington, DC, September 29, 2004.

2005

 * Robert Bryce, "As Green as a Neocon. Why Iraq hawks are driving Priuses," Slate, January 25, 2005.
 * Tom Barry, "Neocons and Liberals Together, Again," International Relations Center (WorldPress.org), February 16, 2005.
 * James Wolcott, "Second Verse, Same as the First," JamesWolcott.com, March 1, 2005.
 * "Before Sunset," PR Watch, March 5, 2005. From Rolling Stone.

2006

 * "Iranian Reformers," FDD Blog, March 2, 2006.
 * Meghan Klyne, "Congress Outbids Bush On Iran Democracy Aid," The New York Sun, March 3, 2006. Lieberman, Sen. Rick Santorum (R-PA), and the FDD sponsored "a panel discussion of leading Iranian pro-democracy activists."
 * News Release: "President Discusses Freedom and Democracy in Iraq," Dorothy Betts Marvin Theatre, The George Washington University, Washington, D.C., March 13, 2006.
 * Jim Lobe, "Bush Reaffirms Ties With Leading Neocons," Inter Press Service (antiwar.com), March 15, 2006.
 * Sidney Blumenthal, "Iraq: The big lie. Bush and Rumsfeld robotically repeat their Iraq talking points, ignoring the fact that their ambassador and generals are contradicting them," Salon, March 16, 2006. Preview or subscription required.
 * Scott Shane, "Behind Bush's Fury, a Vow Made in 2001," New York Times, June 29, 2006.
 * "Iran: The Next War," PR Watch, July 26, 2006. From Rolling Stone. Also see war in Iran
 * Clifford D. May, "National interest loses in Connecticut," Boston Herald, August 10, 2006.
 * Newt Gingrich, "The Only Option is to Win," Washington Post (FDD website), August 11, 2006.
 * LindainCinci, "FDD, the new PNAC with Lieberman, Schumer and other PNAC members," Daily Kos, August 15, 2006.
 * Debra England, "Top 10 charitable gift ideas for this holiday season," TownHall.com, December 16, 2006.

2007

 * Jim Lobe, "Neo-Cons Driving Iran Divestment Campaign," InterPress Service, May 11, 2007.

External resources

 * Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Right Web Profile.
 * Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Wikipedia.
 * Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, Political Friendster.
 * Foundation for Defense of Democracies Neocon Europe.