Chasing Free Enterprise: An Investor Gives Steadily for Libertarian Think Tanks

Chasing Free Enterprise: An Investor Gives Steadily for Libertarian Think Tanks

Derwood S. Chase, Jr. is another donor who's following the right's playbook of investing in both national and state policy groups, and sticking with grantees over the long haul. 

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"The Longer View." Inside the Bradley Foundation's Ambitious Push to Win State Policy Battles

"The Longer View." Inside the Bradley Foundation's Ambitious Push to Win State Policy Battles

After a big recent infusion of funds, this leading conservative funder embraced a larger, more activist agenda, with a focus on winning influence for the right in state capitals—and the broader culture.

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Boring? Hardly. Why At Least Some Funders Care About Government Budgets

Boring? Hardly. Why At Least Some Funders Care About Government Budgets

Work on budgetary issues has never drawn a lot of funding. Now, though, some new donors are putting millions behind efforts to create better, more reliable fiscal data and analysis.

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Second Thoughts: Why I Changed My Mind About Philanthropy and Public Policy

Second Thoughts: Why I Changed My Mind About Philanthropy and Public Policy

If you're in the nonprofit policy world, it may seem to go without saying that such cause-driven work should be subsidized by your fellow taxpayers. But who benefits the most from this setup?

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Just the Facts, Please: Steve Ballmer's Interesting Project on Government Spending

Just the Facts, Please: Steve Ballmer's Interesting Project on Government Spending

When a couple has $30 billion and is ramping up their philanthropy, we pay attention. Steve Ballmer's new project has an intuitive interface and a simple mission: the facts. 

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Who Supports Trump's Favorite Immigration Think Tank?

Who Supports Trump's Favorite Immigration Think Tank?

Small and controversial, the Center for Immigration Studies is now an influential player in Washington. Most of its funding comes from just one foundation that also bankrolls other anti-immigration groups.

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The Hand That Feeds: Can Think Tanks Ruled by the Wealthy Really Be Impartial?

The Hand That Feeds: Can Think Tanks Ruled by the Wealthy Really Be Impartial?

As Brookings reels in a big gift from a private equity billionaire, we raise the question of whether an institution dominated by rich board members and donors can be truly unbiased on policy matters. 

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Meet an Investor who Champions Libertarian Think Tanks

Meet an Investor who Champions Libertarian Think Tanks
SIG Founder Arthur Dantchik has been a steady backer of major libertarian policy organizations. We take a look at what's being funded and why.
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Philanthropy Seeks Scientific Rigor on the Battlefield of American Elections

Philanthropy Seeks Scientific Rigor on the Battlefield of American Elections

The latest move by Hewlett’s Madison Initiative will establish a lab at MIT devoted to the science of elections. Can philanthropy establish a level-headed foothold in our tumultuous elections?

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Brain Power: A Foundation's Fellowship Program Puts Policy Grad Students in City Halls

Brain Power: A Foundation's Fellowship Program Puts Policy Grad Students in City Halls

Harried high-level city officials often complain they don't have the bandwidth to dive deeper on policy. Here's what one philanthropist has been doing to team them up with smart young wonks.  

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Think Blue: A Way Forward for Liberal Philanthropy in the Age of Trump

Think Blue: A Way Forward for Liberal Philanthropy in the Age of Trump

Most of the nation's wealth is produced in blue states and plenty of the biggest problems can be found there, too. So here's some advice for liberal funders: Stop thinking nationally, at least for now. 

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If Anyone Can Raise Money for Good Government, It's This Guy

Paul Volcker has lately been on a mission to bolster the public sector, tapping his unique stature. Who's gotten behind him?

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If Altruism Is Overrated, Who's Backing Ayn Rand's Ideas?

If Altruism Is Overrated, Who's Backing Ayn Rand's Ideas?
It's no surprise that quite a few wealthy Master-of-the-Universe types are big fans of Ayn Rand's work. Which helps explain why nonprofits promoting Objectivism are booming. Take a look.
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Move Over, Bernie. This Foundation Wants Millennials to Love the Free Market

Move Over, Bernie. This Foundation Wants Millennials to Love the Free Market
The John Templeton Foundation is well-known for funding philosophical moonshots. Now it wants to make free market ideas more palatable to the younger generation.
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Rightward, Ho! Ten Top Funders Behind the Surging Libertarian Movement

Rightward, Ho! Ten Top Funders Behind the Surging Libertarian Movement
Why have the apostles of individual liberty and the free market been coming on so strong lately? One major reason is the concerted and strategic grantmaking of fewer than a dozen funders.
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The Forever Grant: Why the Bradley Foundation Keeps Bankrolling Charles Murray

The Forever Grant: Why the Bradley Foundation Keeps Bankrolling Charles Murray
When Murray won a $250,000 prize from the Bradley Foundation last month, it culminated three decades of grant support—a remarkable relationship between a public intellectual and a funder.
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Who's Getting This Conservative Funder's Top Prizes?

Who's Getting This Conservative Funder's Top Prizes?
The Bradley Foundation's fingerprints can be found on nearly every big conservative idea since the 1980s. Its generous Bradley Prize is further proof that funders on the right champion intellectuals.
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Conservative Intellectuals Love This Foundation. Here's Why

Conservative Intellectuals Love This Foundation. Here's Why
The Searle Freedom Trust is less well known than other top conservative foundations. But it's long been part of the cadre of funders who have patiently nurtured the right's policy wonks and scholars.
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Conservative Policy Wonks: Who Among You Doesn't Love the F.M. Kirby Foundation?

Conservative Policy Wonks: Who Among You Doesn't Love the F.M. Kirby Foundation?
The foundations that have built up the right's policy infrastructure since the 1970s tend to be modest in size, and Kirby is a good example. But they've had huge influence by investing for the long haul.
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Who Gives Money to Conservative Think Tanks?

Who Gives Money to Conservative Think Tanks?
If you got rich in the coastal new economy, you're more likely to give to liberal causes. And if you made your fortune building stuff in the heartland? You may well be turned on by the Heritage Foundation.
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