Formation 1984 Type Nonprofit organization Website capitalresearch.org | Founder Willa Johnson Official language English Founded 1984 | |
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Services Study of charity, philanthropy, voluntarism Headquarters Washington, D.C., United States Similar Philanthropy Roundtable, State Policy Network, Donors Trust, Atlas Network, National Center for Public Po | ||
About the capital research center
Capital Research Center (CRC) is an American conservative non-profit organization located in Washington, D.C. and founded in 1984 by Willa Johnson "to study non-profit organizations, with a special focus on reviving the American traditions of charity, philanthropy, and voluntarism." The group opposes the growth of government-welfare programs and promotes private sector alternatives. It discourages donations by corporations to non-profits supporting what it sees as anti-business or liberal policies. The Capital Research Center is sometimes described as right wing or as being part of the New Right.
Contents
Policy stances
Capital Research Center is highly critical of animal rights activists and the environmental movement. In 2006 it published The Green Wave: Environmentalism and Its Consequences, a book by Dr. Bonner Cohen. In 2007 it published the third edition of The Great Philanthropists and the Problem of “Donor Intent” by Martin Morse Wooster, senior fellow at the Center. In 2008 it published Guide to Nonprofit Advocacy, by James Dellinger. The CRC says Al Gore's campaign to control carbon emissions is motivated by the likelihood that he will make an "immense fortune" if laws are passed to control them; argues that organized labor is bad for America; and has criticized government efforts to weaken intellectual property protection of prescription medications.
History
CRC was founded in 1984 by Willa Johnson, former Senior Vice President of the Heritage Foundation, Deputy Director of the Office of Presidential Personnel in the first Reagan administration, and a legislative aide in both the U.S. Senate and House of Representatives. CRC's current president is Scott Walter, a former Special Assistant to the President for Domestic Policy in the George W. Bush Administration, and former vice president of the Philanthropy Roundtable.
Journalist and author Marvin Olasky previously served as a senior fellow at the CRC.
Funding
Politico reports that the CRC has received millions of dollars of funding from conservative philanthropies over the years. The philanthropies include foundations run by the Koch family, the Scaifes, and the Bradleys. As of 2005 CRC had received $115,000 from ExxonMobil.
Criticism
The Capital Research Center came under fire in the 1990s for publishing studies highly critical of charities which engaged in anti-tobacco lobbying efforts. These charities include the American Heart Association, the American Lung Association and the American Cancer Society. It was later revealed that tobacco giant Philip Morris provided $50,000 in funding to the Capital Research Center.