Could VP's Upcoming Wilson Center Speech Sink a US-China Deal?

Here is more from Bloomberg:

Vice President Mike Pence gave a speech last year that sounded a lot like a new Cold War with China and quickly became one of the most important on Sino-U.S. relations by an American official in recent years. Next Monday, June 24, he’s giving another at the Wilson Center, a talk originally planned for June 4, the 30th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre. There’s a risk that an overly hawkish tone just days before the G-20 could cause Beijing to recoil and jeopardize any hope of a substantive leaders’ meeting.

The speech referred to above was given by Pence in October 2018 at the Hudson Institute, a think tank that has become a major anti-China platform.

Update: The speech has been postponed again.

Atlantic Council Fetes at the Ritz

Here is more from Politico:

The Atlantic Council held its 2019 Distinguished Leadership Awards at the Ritz-Carlton on Tuesday night. The event honored NATO, whose award was received by Rose Gottemoeller from retired Gen. Jim Jones; Adrienne Arsht, whose award was presented by Alonzo Mourning; Christine Lagarde, whose award was presented by Ivanka Trump; and Fred Smith, whose award was presented by Sen. Lamar Alexander (R-Tenn.).

ALSO SPOTTED: Wolf Blitzer, Bret and Amy Baier, Colin and Alma Powell, Marillyn Hewson, Dina Powell and David McCormick, John F.W. Rogers (the incoming chairman of the board), Anthony Scaramucci, Steve Clemons, Niki Christoff, Mitch Landrieu, John Waldron, Nicole and Dave Nason, Miami-Dade Mayor Carlos Gimenez and wife Lourdes, Sharon Rockefeller,Julie and Wynn Radford, Fred Kempe, Josh and Ali Rogin, Morgan Ortagus and Jonathan Weinberger, Stuart and Gwen Holiday, Franco Nuschese, Anders Fogh Rasmussen, Wesley Clark, Anita McBride, Capricia Marshall, Sam Vinograd and many ambassadors.

Here is more about this year's Distinguished Leadership Awards, which were presented to NATO, philanthropist Adrienne Arsht, IMF Managing Director Christine Lagarde, and FedEx Chairman Frederick Smith.

Spies and Arms Dealers Abound at IISS Annual Event

Here are some juicy tidbits from Reuters, in a piece entitled "The Singapore Hotel Where Top Brass, Dealers and Spies Rub Shoulders":

For the region’s military officers, diplomats, weapons manufacturers and spies, there are few livelier places than the lobby of Singapore’s Shangri-La hotel around mid-year.

Here, beneath pillared ceilings and chandeliers, they gather for an annual informal bash - called the Shangri-La Dialogue - organized by the London-based International Institute for Strategic Studies. 

Retired Western and Asian intelligence figures spend the best part of three days loitering here; a civilian-suited Vietnamese military officer introduces himself to a U.S. naval counterpart while a cadre of Chinese PLA staff walk briskly past. A Laotian military representative practices his golf swing as a gaggle of barefoot teenagers pad past from the swimming pool, towelling themselves down and apparently oblivious to the swirl of strategic tension. 

While the IISS scholars organized a variety of panels covering regional flashpoints and trends and diplomats arranged formal bilateral meetings for their defense ministers, the siderooms, bars and cafes are even busier as more discreet business is done and information traded. 

Regional military attaches say the event is a legendary recruitment spot, as officers and diplomats are tapped by business or academia - and sometimes more shadowy enterprises. One delegate said Singapore’s status as a leading financial hub helps. 

According to rumor, operatives from various friendly Western and Asian intelligence agencies hold a parallel gathering in another hotel, to exchange information. That has never been verified.

As well as the IISS, the sponsors of the Shangri-La Dialogue include major Western defense firms, including Boeing, Airbus, BAE Systems, Lockheed Martin and Raytheon - in part a reflection of gradually rising regional defense budgets.

Here is a link to IISS's Shangri-La Dialogue (SLD), which took place June 1-3 in Singapore.  Here is a link to the agenda.  Besides the ones mentioned above, other sponsors included Singapore Technologies Engineering, Booz Allen Hamilton, and the Asahi Shimbun.

Here is a bit more background of the Shangri-La Dialogue.  Why is it so important?  Here is a bit about how the event, which draws a huge security presence, impacts traffic.

Last year, there was quite a bit of tension after India pulled out of the SLD over an apparent snub from the organizers, precipitating the need for a team from IISS to visit India and smooth things over.

Here is a piece from The Telegraph entitled "Cambridge Spy Seminars Hit by Whispers of Russian Links as Three Intelligence Experts Resign," about the Cambridge Intelligence Seminar (CIS), an academic forum on the Western spy world.

Pic: Every Think Tank Conference Needs This

This is from Imogene Dudley, a doctoral candidate at the University of Exeter:

Every conference programme needs one of these! #ESSHC2018 pic.twitter.com/qOOXrPfUts

— Imogene Dudley (@imogene_dudley) April 6, 2018

Can Think Tank Events Be Trusted?

These days, more and more think tank and higher education events are being sponsored by outside organizations with specific agendas, blurring the lines between truly unbiased programming and paid advertising for corporations and others.

Here is a recent example from The Wall Street Journal:

More than a dozen financial advisers claim to have given speeches at Harvard Business School or the U.S. Military Academy at West Point, but they weren’t invited to speak by those leading universities.

Instead, they were invited by Clint Arthur, an erstwhile screenwriter, former taxi driver and organic-butter salesman who rents club space on campus, throws up staging emblazoned with symbols resembling the school’s insignia, invites celebrities like actress Suzanne Somers–and enables advisers to adorn themselves with the prestige of Harvard or West Point.

Mr. Arthur, age 52, born Arthur Clinton Gross, is a charismatic marketing impresario who trains ​businesspeople — including, so far, about three dozen financial advisers — in media skills. He charges roughly $5,000 to $25,000​ for programs that often include an appearance on a prestigious campus.

That helps his clients stand out amid hundreds of thousands of financial advisers offering similar services whose quality is hard for consumers to distinguish.

According to emails reviewed by The Wall Street Journal, Mr. Arthur paid $10,000 for a sponsorship arrangement with a students’ entrepreneurship club at Harvard Business School in 2015 and renewed the arrangement in 2016 and 2017. Mr. Arthur also said, “our use of the words ‘Harvard Business School’ was reviewed and approved by Harvard.”

While a handful of think tanks advertise or reveal the entities behind a particular event (if there is one), Think Tank Watch is aware of numerous think tanks that do not provide any information about sponsors of events.

Think Tank Panels - A Humorous Look

In his book The Beltway Bible, Eliot Nelson has a section in which he humorously describes think tank panels:

Ubiquitous sight inside the Beltway.  Navel gazing is one of D.C.'s most beloved pastimes, and it's no surprise that every week the city plays hosts to dozens - if not hundreds - of panels where its bottomless well of experts gather to impress each other.  Truly, these things are no less common a sight in the nation's capital that black Lincoln Navigators with tinted windows.

Panelists pontificate on roundtables dedicated to the challenges of updating the tax code in the age of hashtags, they ponder the future of dog-grooming regulatory regimes at the Brookings Institution, and they convene at the National Press Club and discuss the challenges restless leg syndrome poses to think tanks in the post-MySpace environment.  Most panel titles follow a similar blueprint, with a catchy statement or question followed by a description of the event - something along the lines of, "Right Tighty, Lefty Loosey?  Examining Knobs in the 21st Century" or "You Say, 'Potato,' I Say, 'Where's the Lactation Room?'  Updating OSHA Regulations for Today's Working Parents."

Though this theory has not been confirmed, it's entirely possible that panels are just excuses for people to have photos of themselves taken while striking a thoughtful pose behind a folding table.  Those things make for great Twitter bio photos, especially for people who don't have a TV appearance from which they can take a still from.

Check out all our past posts on think tank events (such as this one and this one), as Think Tank Watch has documented all the fun, fails, and follies of think tank events over the past years.  Here is more on Washington think tank events.

Wilson Center to Hold Event on Think Tanks

The Wilson Center, which is facing deep cuts in the Trump Administration budget, will be holding an event next month to tout the role that think tanks play in shaping public policy.

The speakers for the April 5 event include:

• Lee Edwards, Distinguished Fellow at the Heritage Foundation
• Bridget Lowell, Chief Communications Officer at the Urban Institute
• James McGann, Director of the Think Tank and Civil Societies Program at the University of Pennsylvania
• Spencer Overton, President of the Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies
• Richard Weitz, Director of the Center for Political-Military Analysis at the Hudson Institute

Here is a recent Think Tank Watch piece on how the Wilson Center could face huge staff cuts if the Trump budget passes.

peakers

• Lee Edwards

  Distinguished Fellow, Heritage Foundation

• Bridget Lowell

  Chief Communications Officer, Urban Institute

• James McGann

  Director, Think Tank and Civil Societies Program, University of Pennsylvania and Author of The Fifth Estate

• Spencer Overton

  President, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies (United States)

• Richard Weitz

  Director, Center for Political-Military Analysis, Hudson Institute

- See more at: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/what-role-do-think-tanks-play-shaping-public-policy-and-public-discourse-the-united-states#sthash.czrywaXN.dpuf

peakers

• Lee Edwards

  Distinguished Fellow, Heritage Foundation

• Bridget Lowell

  Chief Communications Officer, Urban Institute

• James McGann

  Director, Think Tank and Civil Societies Program, University of Pennsylvania and Author of The Fifth Estate

• Spencer Overton

  President, Joint Center for Political and Economic Studies (United States)

• Richard Weitz

  Director, Center for Political-Military Analysis, Hudson Institute

- See more at: https://www.wilsoncenter.org/event/what-role-do-think-tanks-play-shaping-public-policy-and-public-discourse-the-united-states#sthash.czrywaXN.dpuf

Dem Think Tank Organizes Own CPAC for Liberals

The liberal think tank Center for American Progress (CAP) is organizing a major conference in May with the goal of organizing Democrats in order to develop policy goals that will eventually bring Democrats back into power.  Here is more from Politico:

Instead of CPAC, it’ll be the Ideas Conference. Instead of taking place at National Harbor, it’ll be in the main room at the St. Regis Hotel, a few blocks from the White House. Instead of featuring President Donald Trump, it’ll be the first real cattle call of the Democrats nosing around 2020 presidential runs.

And it’ll be the Center for American Progress’ biggest move yet to establish itself as both the nexus of the Democratic Party’s future — and a player trying to shape what that future will be.

They’re modeling the event roughly on the Conservative Political Action Conference, the American Conservative Union’s annual gathering that’s become a prime stop for Republican leaders, and that notably gave Donald Trump his first major political platform as he was entering the fray.

Democratic Sens. Elizabeth Warren of Massachusetts, Cory Booker of New Jersey, Kamala Harris of California, Chris Murphy of Connecticut and Kirsten Gillibrand of New York; Montana Gov. Steve Bullock; and Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti are all confirmed to attend, and more are expected to be added to the event, scheduled for May 16.

Speakers have been encouraged to come with substantive proposals on the economy, climate change, national security, civil rights, reproductive rights and immigration rather than just political attacks on Trump. Sprinkled through the day will be panel discussions and conversations that will bring in activists and leaders of new organizations.

Here is a previous Think Tank Watch piece on CAP's pivot after Donald Trump won the presidency, and here is another piece on the future of the think tank in the Trump presidency.

Think Tank Scholar From AEI Causes Riot at Middlebury

Events where think tank scholars speak are usually staid affairs that are known to be more soporific than action-inducing.  But when American Enterprise Institute (AEI) scholar Charles Murray recently visited Middlebury College for a talk, chaos was unleashed.

Here is more from The New York Times:

Hundreds of students at Middlebury College in Vermont shouted down a controversial speaker on Thursday night, disrupting a program and confronting the speaker in an encounter that turned violent and left a faculty member injured.

Laurie L. Patton, the president of the college, issued an apology on Friday to all who attended the event and to the speaker, Charles Murray, 74, whose book “The Bell Curve,” published in 1994, was an explosive treatise arguing that blacks were intellectually inferior to whites because of their genetic makeup.

...An open letter to the college from more than 450 alumni objecting to Mr. Murray’s presence on campus said it was not a matter of free speech. The letter, written before Thursday’s event, said that his views were offensive and based on shoddy scholarship and that they should not be legitimized.

Here is The Federalist on how Middlebury "enabled the student riot" during the Murray visit.  Here is how The Wall Street Journal portrayed the events.

A video of the attempted lecture can be found here.  Charles Murray wrote about the Middlebury incident here.  AEI President Arthur Brooks also weighed in.

Murray is the W.H. Brady Scholar at AEI, and all of his think tank work can be found here.  And don't forget to take his quiz that rates your affiliation with "mainstream American culture."

New Book Describes Think Tank Panels

Eliot Nelson, a reporter for the Huffington Post, has just written a book called "The Beltway Bible: A Totally Serious A-Z Guide to Our No-Good, Corrupt, Incompetent, Terrible, Depressing and Sometimes Hilarious Government."

Here is an excerpt from the book about panels (including think tank panels):

The convening of experts in sofa chairs or on barstools to furrow their brows and prove how qualified they are to opine about emerging government transparency regimes in the Balkans.

Most panel titles follow a similar blueprint, featuring a catchy statement or question followed by a description of the event — something along the lines of “Righty Tighty, Lefty Loosey? Examining Knobs in the 21st Century” or “You Say, ‘Potato,’ I Say, ‘Where’s the Lactation Room?’ Updating OSHA Regulations for Today’s Working Parents.”

Friends in Washington invite you to their panels the way friends everywhere else invite you to their improv shows. Do you feel compelled to attend? Yes. Will you enjoy it? No. Will your friend not shut up about it on social media? Of course not.

Check out past entries from Think Tank Watch for more commentary about think tank panels.

Violence Erupts on Think Tank Row Amid Visit by Turkish President

The usually subdued think tank row in Washington, DC erupted into violence today as Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was visiting the Brookings Institution.

Erdogan was giving a keynote speech at the think tank entitled "Global challenges and Turkey's goals for the year 2023."  A video can be watched here.

Foreign Policy has done an excellent job of covering all the chaos that occurred.  Here are some excerpts:

A planned speech by the controversial Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan descended into violence and chaos Thursday, with one journalist physically removed from the event site by Turkish security personnel, another kicked by a guard, and a third — a woman — thrown to the sidewalk in front of a Washington think tank where he was to speak.

A small group of protesters gathered across the street from the Brookings Institute near Dupont Circle in Washington, with one holding a large sign reading “Erdogan: War Criminal On The Loose,” while another used a megaphone to chant that he was a “baby-killer.”

When the protesters tried to cross the street, Washington police officers blocked traffic and physically separated them from Turkish personnel. A Secret Service agent standing nearby told a colleague that “the situation is a bit out of control.”

Later, a shoving match between what appeared to be a Brookings Institute worker and Turkish security broke out. “I am in charge of this building,” the apparent Brookings employee shouted as the two tangled. A Foreign Policy reporter and others holding cameras outside the event were also scolded by Turkish security.  One cameraman was chased across the street by Turkish guards.

There were also confrontations between Turkish security and D.C. police. The Turkish officials wanted police to remove protesters, and the cops refused.

In a statement late Thursday, Brooking’s spokesperson Gail Chalef said that the think tank did its “best to ensure that journalists and other guests who had registered in advance for the event were able to enter.” She added that she believes all journalists who registered were able to attend.

The full, must-read Foreign Policy piece can be read here (make sure to watch the embedded videos).  We told you that think tank events aren't ALWAYS boring.

Ironically, in 2013, Turkey blamed the American Enterprise Institute (AEI) for protests in Turkey.  We wonder if Turkey will blame Brookings for protests on US soil...


Update: Foreign Policy in now reporting that Brookings threatened to cancel the Erdogan speech after his security personnel "pushed, threatened, and kicked both Western and Turkish journalists" and protestors in front of the think tank.  FP says: "In a tense exchange, Brookings President Strobe Talbott told a Turkish official that the organization was prepared to call off the visit even though Erdogan's motorcade was already en route to the event."  FP adds that the cancellation of the event would have been an embarrassment for both Brookings and Erdogan because the speech had been heavily publicized and attracted an overflow crowd.

Netanyahu's Think Tank Balancing Act: AEI & CAP

When heads of state and foreign leaders come to Washington, it is customary for them these days to do a bit of the think tank circuit.

As Think Tank Watch reported earlier, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanhayu will be coming to the conservative think tank American Enterprise Institute (AEI) on November 9 to pick up the 2015 Irving Kristol Award.

But in a new twist, he will also be visiting the liberal Center for American Progress (CAP), a think tank with extremely close ties to the Clintons and the Obama Administration.  Here is more from Foreign Policy:

Call it think tank diplomacy.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is on his way to Washington for a Nov. 9 meeting with President Barack Obama — the first between the two leaders since they engaged in a bruising and protracted feud over the Iran nuclear deal.

Netanyahu has been under pressure to try to repair his battered relationship with Obama and other leading Democrats and raised eyebrows when he scheduled an event at the conservative American Enterprise Institute (AEI) for the same day. Perhaps mindful of the poor optics, Netanyahu has settled on a simple way of trying to defuse the controversy: giving an address to the liberal Center for American Progress, which announced Tuesday that it, too, would host the Israeli leader during his November visit.

The decision to visit the liberal think tank is being welcomed by some pro-Israel Democrats, who have urged Netanyahu to try to strengthen his ties to the American left. Critics of the hard-line leader, though, said they doubted he’d use the address to announce any substantive policy shifts.

Initial liberal complaints about Netanyahu’s upcoming visit emerged when the Israeli government announced that the prime minister would visit AEI the same day as his meeting at the White House. AEI is a prominent conservative think tank in Washington that routinely blasts Obama’s policies and maintains relationships with a wide array of veterans of the George W. Bush administration. In September, it hosted former Vice President Dick Cheney, who said the Iran deal was “madness.”

The center’s decision to host Netanyahu has rankled some employees of the progressive research organization. “I’m not thrilled with the idea of giving Netanyahu a platform, but as long as his ideas are challenged in an open way, I think it’s healthy,” said an employee who works in the center’s network.

The Huffington Post has some pretty in-depth reporting on how CAP was able to land Netanyahu for a policy address.  The general conclusion is that it took a lot of lobbying from the Israeli Embassy as well as the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC).  Here is more:

As part of the tour, the Israeli government pushed hard for an invite to the Center for American Progress and landed an event at the progressive institution on Nov. 10, the day after Netanyahu has a scheduled meeting with Obama. The embassy's push for the invite, sources familiar with the lobbying said, was joined by the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which also applied pressure to CAP to allow Netanyahu to speak.

Some current and former CAP employees were disappointed by the news of Netanyahu’s upcoming visit, which was first floated Tuesday by the Jewish Insider, a newsletter on Jewish politics. Multiple sources confirmed the news to The Huffington Post. (Tanden declined to comment.)

“He’s looking for that progressive validation,” said a former CAP staffer, “and they’re basically validating a guy who race-baited during his election and has disavowed the two-state solution, which is CAP’s own prior work."

 “This is someone who is an enemy of the progressive agenda, who has targeted Israeli human rights organizations throughout his term, and was re-elected on the back of blatant anti-Arab race-baiting,” echoed Matt Duss, who used to work at CAP and now heads the Foundation for Middle East Peace. “The idea that CAP would agree to give him bipartisan cover is really disappointing.”

As part of the effort to restore Netanyahu’s clout with Democrats, the Israeli embassy reached out to Tanden, the president of CAP, requesting the institution host the prime minister during his November trip. AIPAC, which has paid for multiple CAP employees to visit Israel, followed up to pressure the think tank on the request.

CAP’s relationship with AIPAC and its allies is fraught. Three years ago, CAP employed policy analyst Matt Duss, and its publication ThinkProgress employed Ali Gharib and Eli Clifton; all three wrote controversial pieces challenging the Israeli occupation of the Palestinian territories. Pro-Israel lobbyists pushed hard against CAP, and all three felt the pressure and have since left.

Some former staffers have criticized CAP for not engaging aggressively enough in the Iran debate, a contention those involved in the fight say is simply inaccurate, and doesn't account for both its public statements and behind-the-scenes work. 

Netanyahu is among many of the world's prime ministers and presidents who have recently visited Washington, DC's top think tanks.  For example, on October 27, Indonesian President Joko Widodo spoke at the Brookings Institution.  And earlier this month, South Korean President Park Geun-hye spoke at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS).

Here is a link to CAP's Netanyahu event on November 10.

Update: Here is what The Washington Free Beacon has to say about Netanyahu speaking at CAP.  And here is what The Nation is saying about the upcoming speech in an piece written by former CAP staffer Ali Gharib entitled "Why Is the Center For American Progress Hosting Benjamin Netanyahu."  It notes that MoveOn has started a petition to disinvite Netanyahu to CAP.  As of this writing, the petition had more than 700 signatures.

Update: Los Angeles Times: CAP should host Netanyahu.

Update: Foreign Policy: "Netanyahu Visit Sparks Internal Backlash at Powerhouse DC Think Tank."  CAP held an all-staff meeting Friday on the Netanyahu speech, and at the end of the meeting, around a dozen CAP employees stood up and delivered an impassioned joint statement criticizing CAP's decision to host Netanyahu.  The article also notes that the Arab American Institute and Jewish Voice for Peace has have issued an open letter to CAP criticizing the think tank for hosting Netanyahu.

Update: US Campaign to End the Israeli Occupation is planning to picket outside of CAP's office on Nov. 10.

Update: Washington Post: CAP under fire for hosting Netanyahu.

Update: Jeffrey Goldberg says that Netanyahu should speak at CAP.