Heritage Foundation undergoes mass staff exodus, the entire legal and economic policy staff departed

Bad news! This headline got my attention as the Heritage Foundation is a former employer of mine under the presidency of Ed Feulner!

I am not sure the presidents of the THF including the current Mr. Kevin Roberts (2021-) were good choices following co-founder and president Edwin Feulner (1977-2013, he passed away in 2025). His predecessor was Kay Coles James (2018-2021), she was preceded by Jim DeMint (2013-2017).

Weak or wrong leadership can ruin any institution.

"Nearly the entire legal and economic policy staff of the Heritage Foundation is departing the conservative think tank, and many will be taking up posts at Advancing American Freedom (AAF), a nonprofit founded in 2021 by former Vice President Mike Pence. The mass exodus represents a dramatic rebuke of Heritage President Kevin Roberts in the wake of his refusal to retract an October video defending Tucker Carlson for conducting a friendly interview with the antisemitic influencer Nick Fuentes. ..."

Heritage Foundation undergoes mass staff exodus as cracks open on the New Right "The divisions are no longer just between pro-Trump and anti-Trump conservatives."

Ed Feulner

China’s Hands Are in America’s Bacon, Hot Dogs. We Should Be Concerned, New Report Says. Really!

Some American conservatives are becoming hysterical and paranoid, if not comical like the Heritage Foundation! Who does not like Chinese takeout? 😊

A case of Sinophobia?

And it's old news too!

"... Over the years, China has expanded its involvement in America’s food system, such as in 2013, when the Chinese-owned company WH Group acquired Smithfield Foods.  

Smithfield, a company largely known for its bacon, controls a quarter of U.S. pork processing, distributing products through brands such as Eckrich, famous for its sausages and deli meats, and Nathan’s Famous, the iconic hot dog brand, the America First Policy Institute explains in a new report, released Wednesday, detailing China’s threat to American agriculture. ..."

China Is Making Our Bacon. That's No Baloney, Report Warns.

The Heritage Foundation Mourns the Loss of Its Founder, Dr. Edwin J. Feulner

R.I.P my former boss!

Heritage Foundation founder Ed Feulner dies at 83 years old

R.I.P. from a former employee of the Heritage Foundation! He was an inspiration.

"... The founder, who was considered a titan in Republican politics, helped transform the foundation from a small think-tank to a massive conservative powerhouse. ..."

Heritage Foundation founder Ed Feulner dies at 83 years old | Just The News "Feulner, who has authored nine books, created the foundation in 1973 and served as its president for 37 years."

Nationwide Injunctions by federal district courts Were Never Supposed To Be Used Like This

Recommendable! The speaker is the Heritage Foundation's own Hans von Spakovsky.

How Trump’s Policies Already Align With the Heritage Foundation Project 2025. Really!

Recommendable! However, the the linkages between Trump and Project 2025 are very much contrived. Most of these ideas of or proposals for a more limited and smaller government have been around for decades and have been promoted by many individuals and organisations. In so far, the video is a joke!

At least the video admits more than once that President Trump is going beyond and above Project 2025!

Shutting Down The Department Of Education: A Step by Step Guide

Very recommendable! Will Trump succeed creating a more limited and smaller federal government? Hope and pray!

How Project 2025 Backfired on the Right

Recommendable! I am afraid, the Heritage Foundation made a huge mistake to go to this great detail and length with Project 2025. They made themselves an easy target! 

However, I suspect many of the proposals actually do make sense and should be implemented. 

More classical liberalism, more federalism and small and limited federal government are urgently needed!

Caveat: I am not familiar with the details of Project 2025.

Project 2025: The Conservative Plan to Reshape America Under Trump

Recommendable! I suspect much of this agenda is quite agreeable! Great, if it leads to a smaller and a more limited government and a restoration of more federalism in the US.

Caveat: I am not familiar with the details of the Project 2025 by the Heritage Foundation.

The Scary Fed Idea To Turn Your Dollars Into a Digital currency Power Grab. Really!

Sometimes The Heritage Foundation (my former employer) gets it very wrong! This is foolish scaremongering and hysteria!

We have accepted for thousands of years that governments issue legal tender generally known as money. So why not digital currency?

Yes, governments abuse currency and money by stoking inflation, running excessive deficits, currency devaluation etc. They have done this in the past and they will do so in the future irrespective of the type of currency. Perhaps, better oversight by the legislature and more responsible voting by citizens would help!

Of course, as a classical liberal I would prefer private money over government issued money, but maybe it is still not the time for that.

"KEY TAKEAWAYS

1. Imagine if a bureaucrat had the power to limit your savings or place a "shelf-life" on money you earn.
2. Imagine the government creating dollars that can only be used for food, thereby dictating to you how much of your income can be spent that way.
3. Bureaucrats could turn down people for loans based upon things other than their likelihood of repaying. Are you not woke enough? Then no mortgage for you.

... "

The Scary Fed Idea To Turn Your Dollars Into a Digital Power Grab | The Heritage Foundation

Urgent Need for U.S. Federal Age Verification Laws for Online Porn. Really!

Sometimes The Heritage Foundation is dead wrong! See my blog post regarding this subject.

Obviously false premise:

"Blocking and filtering software has proved to be insufficient in preventing online access to pornography, and not everyone utilizes the software on every device a child may access."

Urgent Need for Federal Age Verification Laws for Online Porn

Picture of the day

What a stupid slogan! It was disseminated by the Heritage Foundation! As a pro lifer myself I am offended!

Heritage Foundation President Roberts Offers Tucker Carlson a Job after Fox News

Good news! Tucker Carlson's professional career started at my former employee!

"Heritage Foundation President Kevin Roberts expressed shock Monday at the news that Fox News had parted ways with prime-time host Tucker Carlson earlier in the day, and reiterated his offer to give Carlson a job if he needs one. ..."

Heritage Foundation's Kevin Roberts Offers Tucker Carlson a Job 

U.S. Department of Justice Sued Over Protests at Supreme Court Justices' Home

Good news! Bravo! We all should be so happy that this utter partisan fool Merrick Garland did not become a U.S. Supreme Court Justice!

My former employer is taking action!

"The Heritage Foundation’s Oversight Project is suing the Justice Department for communications related to the department’s failure to apply federal law against far-left protests at the Supreme Court Justices’ homes.

The suit follows Attorney General Merrick Garland’s admission that it is a federal crime (under 18 U.S.C. § 1507) to protest outside a judge’s home with the intent of influencing that judge. Garland has not enforced that law, though both Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin and former Maryland Gov. Larry Hogan requested that he do so, and in March, Garland claimed that the U.S. Marshals “on scene” make the decision “whether to make an arrest.” ..."

EXCLUSIVE: DOJ Sued Over Protests at Supreme Court Justices' Home

Winning the New Cold War: A Plan for Countering China | The Heritage Foundation. Really!

It is very regrettable and irresponsible that the prominent, influential conservative think tank Heritage Foundation calls for a new Cold War!

One thing is for sure that Western countries have been asleep at the switch regarding the ascendance of the Communist Party of China and its policy of hegemony! Or were Western countries, individuals, and businesses to willing to kowtow!

What would President Reagan famously say Mr. Jinping tear down the Chinese Wall! Or? Unfortunately, there is a senile and demented 46th President in the White House!

From the opening paragraph of the Executive Summary:

"The Heritage Foundation’s “Winning the New Cold War: A Plan for Countering China” offers the U.S. government, business community, and civil society a comprehensive policy agenda for securing a prosperous American future while confronting the greatest external threat the U.S. has faced since the collapse of the USSR. [???] ..."

The Executive Summary also contains a long list of Key Recommendations. Most of them make sense and should be implemented.

Winning the New Cold War: A Plan for Countering China | The Heritage Foundation

Singapore, With the World’s Freest Economy, Stands as America’s Indispensable Foreign Policy Partner

Good to see my former boss is alive and well! The article was written by one of my former colleagues at the Heritage Foundation!

Singapore, With the World’s Freest Economy, Stands as America’s Indispensable Foreign Policy Partner

In a meeting Monday in Singapore, Edwin J. Feulner, founder and former longtime president of The Heritage Foundation, presents a copy of the leading think tank's 2023 Index of Economic Freedom to Singaporean Foreign Minister Vivian Balakrishnan.

Tucker Carlson to Headline Heritage Foundation’s 50th Anniversary Gala

That is quite a statement by Tucker Carlson! As a former employee of the THF I am in awe!

Tucker Carlson to Headline Heritage Foundation’s 50th Anniversary Gala: Fox News host Tucker Carlson will deliver the keynote address at The Heritage Foundation’s 50th anniversary gala, the conservative policy organization announced Thursday. The evening... Read More

Comment on The U.S. A 40% Fatherless Nation?

What a shoddy article published by the Heritage Foundation! Those kind of opinion pieces are not helpful! This article is actually so lousy that I strongly recommend retraction!

What is wrong:

1. Unmarried does not mean fatherless! It is a lot more complicated!
2. The author also only faintly hints at decades of government programs that promote and finance single mother households. Many rational acting citizens can be excused for a lot of dollars and sense to take advantage of these government programs by officially stating to be a single parent household!

Written by "Terence P. Jeffrey is the editor in chief of CNSNews.com."

A 40% Fatherless Nation?

Did leading conservative public policy organisations fail to oppose new Juneteenth federal holiday?

6/25/2021: Verified by contacting them that the Mackinac Center for Public Policy did not bother either.

6/24/2021: I learnt about this horrible YouTube video titled "Juneteenth Represents What Is Special About America" produced by the Heritage Foundation confirming that the THF committed a huge blunder here!!!

6/23/2021: Nevada Policy Research Institute had no opinion either according to the results obtained using their website search function. Likewise the Mackinac Center for Public Policy.

6/22/2021: It appears the John Locke Foundation of North Carolina had no opinion on the new holiday. When you use the search function with the term 'juneteenth' on their website only one item is found dating from 2014. Either the search function is crappy or the foundation had no opinion on this topic.

6/21/2021: Today, I learnt that apparently the Texas Public Policy Foundation appears to have endorsed the new federal holiday! Today's email newsletter titled "The Truth About Juneteenth" states: "... I’ll put my cards on the table: I am in favor of Juneteenth and its celebration, on the grounds that making the rest of America celebrate a Texas holiday is an intrinsic good, and also on the grounds that — properly understood — the historical background illuminates the promise and purpose of America. The freedom of enslaved Americans didn’t happen despite America: it happened because of America. ...". The author (a foundation C suite officer) of this newsletter seems to be quite confused and naive about this new holiday!

As a former employee of the Heritage Foundation under the leadership of Ed Feulner, I am particularly disappointed that the THF under his successor, Kay C. James, appears to have even supported this new holiday! I bet, this would not have happened under Ed Feulner!

See e.g. two recent articles published by the THF that clearly indicate that THF supported this new holiday. Both articles are actually kind of weird! They both attempt to attach something to this new holiday: 
Why Juneteenth Should Serve as Reminder That ‘Family Matters’ (published 6/18/2021)
Since the First Juneteenth, Black Americans Have Struggled to Participate in Elections. Now, We Must Defend Election Integrity (published 6/19/2021)

I may speculate that other prominent conservative public policy organisations failed as well to oppose this new federal holiday. Or how do you explain that the entire U.S. Senate voted in favor of the law by unanimous consent and 415 Representatives voted for it!

I have blogged here about What is wrong with the new Juneteenth Federal Holiday?

Heritage Foundation President Kay C. James: Amid Chaos, Our Resilient Republic Endures

I think, the famous Heritage Foundation needs a new president. I was never impressed with Kay C. James. Her latest public comments/remarks on what happened on January 6, 2021 in Washington DC reveal her as pathetic!

As a former employee of the Heritage Foundation, I would bet that the previous and long time president of this foundation Ed Feulner would have found better words to describe what has happened.

Ms. Kay did not waste one word in her opening statements about the unprecedented and massive election integrity violations that came before! By far most of the protesters in Washington DC on that day were peaceful!

"Like many Americans, I watched in disbelief Wednesday as an angry mob stormed our U.S. Capitol. As members of Congress gathered to certify the electoral votes of the presidential election, a band of criminals decided to take matters into their own hands. As this horrible act is investigated, it will be determined exactly who they were, and they must be held accountable.

The consequences were tragic. Four people dead, others injured. Unanswered questions of how it happened. The democratic process and the peaceful transition of power, which makes American democracy the model for the world, thrown into chaos.  ...
Our fight with the left is over the issues plaguing America, and fight we will. We will use all the tools at our disposal, but we will always respect the rule of law. ..."

Amid Chaos, Our Resilient Republic Endures