Friday, September 6, 2013

Mass Exodus at Heritage Foundation?

Are staffers leaving the Heritage Foundation at a dizzying pace?  There have certainly been some recent high-profile exits, but it doesn't appear there has yet been a mass exodus.

Here is what the Washington Post is reporting:
The shift toward political activism has dismayed some longtime Heritage scholars; more than half a dozen have left in recent months.
The group has experienced a wave of departures to Capitol Hill and rival think tanks in recent months, losing its top statistician, its chief lobbyist, a senior tax analyst, a key retirement expert and a Latin America expert. Heritage Vice President Matthew Spalding announced last month that he was decamping for conservative Hillsdale College, where he will become vice president and dean of educational programs in Washington.
Truluck said that the think tank’s rate of turnover is consistent with past years and that DeMint fully supports independent analysis. “There has been no change in our policy direction,” he said. “Zero.”
The Heritage Foundation was recently ranked as the 18th best think tank in the world by the annual University of Pennsylvania think tank rankings.  It was rated the 9th best think tank in the US.  It was also rated as the #1 think tank in the world in terms of best use of social media and the Internet.  Heritage was also rated as the 10th best think tank in the world in terms of most significant impact on public policy.