Hudson Institute

Hudson Institute is an American conservative think tank based in Washington, D.C. It was founded in 1961 in Croton-on-Hudson, New York, by futurist Herman Kahn and his colleagues at the RAND Corporation.

Kahn was a physicist and military consultant known for envisioning nuclear war scenarios. The institute's research branched out from the military into various areas including economics, health, education, and gambling. Kahn died in 1983 and the institute moved to Indianapolis the year after. The institute helped design Wisconsin's influential workfare program in the mid-1990s. Hudson relocated to Washington, D.C., in 2004. It has been noted for work with governments and industries including defense and agribusiness.

History

1961–1982

Hudson Institute was founded in 1961 by Herman Kahn, Max Singer, and Oscar M. Ruebhausen. Kahn was a Cold War icon, often interviewed in magazines, who was purported to have the highest IQ on record and partly inspired the 1964 movie Dr. Strangelove. In 1960, while employed at the RAND Corporation, Kahn had given a series of lectures at Princeton University on scenarios related to nuclear war. In 1960, Princeton University Press published On Thermonuclear War, a book-length expansion of Kahn's lecture notes. Major controversies ensued, and Kahn and RAND parted ways.

Kahn moved to Croton-on-Hudson, New York, intending to establish a new think tank that was less hierarchical and bureaucratic. Along with Max Singer, a young government lawyer who had been Kahn's RAND colleague, and New York attorney Oscar Ruebhausen, Kahn founded the Hudson Institute on July 20, 1961. Kahn has been described as Hudson's driving intellect while Singer developed the institute's organization. Ruebhausen was an advisor to New York governor Nelson Rockefeller.

Hudson's initial research projects largely represented Kahn's personal interests, which included the domestic and military use of nuclear power and scenario planning exercises about policy options and their possible outcomes. The use of the word scenario in such exercises had been adapted from Hollywood storytelling as a more dignified word than "screenplay", and Kahn was an enthusiastic practitioner. Kahn and his colleagues made pioneering contributions to nuclear deterrence theory and strategy during this period.

Hudson's detailed analyses of "ladders of escalation" and reports on the likely consequences of limited and unlimited nuclear exchanges, eventually published as Thinking About the Unthinkable in 1962 and On Escalation: Metaphors and Scenarios in 1965, were influential within the Kennedy administration. They helped the institute win its first major research contract from the Office of Civil Defense at the Pentagon.

Meanwhile, in popular culture, Dr. Strangelove in 1964 borrowed many lines from Kahn's On Thermonuclear War, and the methods of Kahn, Hudson and RAND also inspired the 1967 satirical book The Report From Iron Mountain, depicting a supposedly secret study on the dangers of peace.

Kahn did not want Hudson limited to defense-related research, and along with Singer, he recruited a staff from diverse academic backgrounds. Hudson also involved a wide range of consultants for analysis and policy, including French philosopher Raymond Aron, African-American novelist Ralph Ellison, political scientist Henry Kissinger, conceptual artist James Lee Byars, and social scientist Daniel Bell. Its focus expanded to include geopolitics, economics, demography, anthropology, science and technology, education, and urban planning.

Kahn in 1962 predicted the rise of Japan as the world's second-largest economy and developed close ties to politicians and corporate leaders there.

Hudson Institute used scenario-planning techniques to forecast long-term developments and was noted for its future studies. In 1967, Hudson published The Year 2000, a bestselling book commissioned by the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Many of the predictions proved correct, including technological developments like portable telephones and network-linked home and office computers.

In 1970, The Emerging Japanese Superstate was published. After the Club of Rome's 1972 report The Limits to Growth produced alarm about the possibility that population growth and resource depletion might result in a 21st-century global "collapse", Hudson responded with its own analysis, The Next 200 Years, which concluded instead that scientific and practical innovations were likely to significantly improve worldwide living standards.

Hudson struggled with funding problems in the 1970s for reasons including increased competition from other think tanks for government grants. It turned to grants from corporations such as IBM and Mobil.

In his 1982 book The Coming Boom, Kahn argued that pro-growth tax and fiscal policies, information technology, and developments by the energy industry would make possible an unprecedented prosperity in the Western world by the early 21st century. Kahn also foresaw unconventional extraction techniques like hydraulic fracturing.

Within 20 years, Hudson had offices in Bonn, Paris, Brussels, Montreal and Tokyo. Other research projects were related to South Korea, Singapore, Australia and Latin America.

1983–2000

After Kahn's sudden death at age 61 on July 7, 1983, Hudson was restructured. Recruited by the City of Indianapolis and the Lilly Endowment, Hudson relocated its headquarters to Indiana in 1984. In 1987, Mitch Daniels, a former aide to Senator Richard Lugar (R-IN) and President Ronald Reagan, was appointed CEO.

William Eldridge Odom, former director of the National Security Agency, became Hudson's director of national security studies; economist Alan Reynolds became director of economic research. Technologist George Gilder led a project on the implications of the digital era for American society.

In 1990, Daniels quit to become vice president of corporate affairs at Eli Lilly and Company. He was succeeded as CEO by Leslie Lenkowsky, a social scientist, and former consultant to Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan.

Under Lenkowsky, Hudson emphasized domestic and social policy. During the early 1990s, the institute did work concerning education reform and applied research on charter schools and school choice.

Also in 1990, Hudson Institute spun off a subsidiary non-profit organization that took the name the Discovery Institute.

At the initiative of Wisconsin governor Tommy Thompson, two members of Hudson were in the small planning group that designed the Wisconsin Works welfare-to-work program. Hudson also helped fund the planning and evaluated the results. A version was adopted nationwide in the 1996 federal welfare-reform legislation signed by President Bill Clinton. In 2001, President George W. Bush's initiative on charitable choice was based on Hudson's research into social-service programs administered by faith-based organizations.

Other Hudson research from this period included 1987's "Workforce 2000", the "Blue Ribbon Commission on Hungary" (1990) "International Baltic Economic Commission" (1991–93), on market-oriented reforms in the newly independent states of Eastern Europe, and the 1997 follow-up study "Workforce 2020".

In 1997, Lenkowsky was succeeded by Herbert London.

2001–2016

After the September 11 attacks, Hudson emphasized international issues such as the Middle East, Latin America, and Islam. On June 1, 2004, Hudson relocated its headquarters to Washington, D.C.

In 2012, Sarah May Stern became chairman of the board of trustees, and remains so to the present.

In 2016, Hudson relocated from its McPherson Square headquarters to a custom-built office space on Pennsylvania Avenue, near the U.S. Capitol and the White House. The new LEED-certified offices were designed by FOX Architects. The Prime Minister of Japan Shinzo Abe presided over the opening of the new offices.

2016–present

Vice President Mike Pence used the institute as his venue for a major policy speech concerning China on October 4, 2018.

In 2021, Pompeo and Elaine Chao, Secretary of Transportation in the Trump administration, joined the institute. In January 2021, John P. Walters was appointed president and CEO of the Hudson Institute. Walters succeeded Kenneth R. Weinstein, who became the first Walter P. Stern Distinguished Fellow. Former U.S. attorney general William P. Barr joined as a distinguished fellow in 2022.

On March 30, 2023, President Tsai Ing-wen of Taiwan attended an event held by the Hudson Institute, where she accepted the institute's Global Leadership Award. In response to the award event, the Foreign Ministry of China imposed sanctions on the institute, its Board of Trustees Chair Sarah May Stern, and its President and CEO John P. Walters.

European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen chose the Hudson Institute to host a major address in October 2023 where she defended Israel's right to defend itself following Palestinian terror attacks. In the speech, she voiced EU solidarity with Israel and drew parallels between acts of terror by Hamas and Russian dictator Vladimir Putin. The speech was coordinated with the White House as President Joe Biden urged Congress to approve additional aid to support Ukraine and Israel as key allies of the United States.

The Institute provides several briefing services, such as the Keystone Defense Initiative, where Rebecca Heinrichs is the Senior Fellow and Director.

Sponsored awards

Hudson offers two annual awards, the Herman Kahn Award and the Global Leadership Awards. Past Hudson Institute honorees include Nikki Haley, Paul Ryan, Mike Pence, Mike Pompeo, Ronald Reagan, Henry Kissinger, Rupert Murdoch, Dick Cheney, Joseph Lieberman, Benjamin Netanyahu, David Petraeus, and Shinzo Abe.

Funding

Hudson Institute is funded by donations from individuals, foundations, and corporations. Notable funders of the Institute include the Silicon Valley Community Foundation, the Sarah Scaife Foundation, and the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.

As of 2021, the organization reported revenue of over $37m with under $20m in expenses and an endowment of $81m.

Hudson Institute has accepted $7.9m from Donors Trust. It has received $25,000 from Exxon Mobil since 1998 and less than $100,000 from Koch family foundations, both of which actively minimize climate change.

The New York Times commented on Dennis Avery's attacks on organic farming: "The attack on organic food by a well-financed research organization suggests that, though organic food accounts for only 1 percent of food sales in the United States, the conventional food industry is worried".

Another employee of the institute, Michael Fumento, was revealed to have received funding from Monsanto for his 1999 book Bio-Evolution. Monsanto's spokesman said: "It's our practice, that if we're dealing with an organization like this, that any funds we're giving should be unrestricted." Hudson's CEO and President Kenneth R. Weinstein told BusinessWeek that he was uncertain if the payment should have been disclosed. "That's a good question, period," he said.

The New York Times suggested Huntington Ingalls Industries had used the Hudson Institute to enhance the company's argument for more nuclear-powered aircraft carriers, at a cost of US$11 billion each. The Times alleged that a former naval officer was paid by Hudson to publish an analysis endorsing more funding. The report was delivered to the House Armed Services subcommittee without disclosing that Huntington Ingalls had paid for part of the report. Hudson acknowledged the misconduct, describing it as a "mistake".

The institute, which publishes frequent reports concerning China, has received funding from the Taiwanese government as have other prominent think tanks.

Politics

Employees of Hudson Institute have made substantial political donations. During the 2022 election cycle, they donated $128,893 to federal campaigns the vast majority of which went to Republican candidates and PACs. A major recipient was Rep. Liz Cheney (R-WY).

The institute is generally described as conservative and sometimes neoconservative. Hudson says it hosts policymakers, foreign policy experts, and elected officials from across the political spectrum. According to its website, Hudson “challenges conventional thinking and helps manage strategic transitions through interdisciplinary studies in defense, international relations, economics, energy, technology, culture, and law.”

Policy Centers

Center for Peace and Security in the Middle East

Led by Michael Doran, the center studies challenges for America and its allies in the middle east in responding to the threats posed by inimical forces such as the Islamic Republic of Iran, Russia, and China to promote peace.

China Center

The China Center at the Hudson Institute studies China with the "central goal of engendering America’s value-based, non-partisan, sound and effective responses to the China challenge." The center was launched in May 2022. It is directed by Miles Yu while Michael Pompeo serves as chair of the advisory board, which consists of Scott Morrison, Paula J. Dobriansky, Morgan Ortagus, and Kyle Bass as of August 2023.

Center on Europe and Eurasia

The Center on Europe and Eurasia, led by Peter Rough, is focused on "checking Russia’s military aggression in Ukraine, countering China’s subversion of the continent, extricating Europe from strategic vulnerabilities, forging key links in Central Asia, and modernizing our transatlantic military posture and economic ties". The center was launched in 2022.

Japan Chair

The Japan Chair at the Hudson Institute is led by Kenneth R. Weinstein, a fellow at the Institute and its former CEO. It is focused on strengthening the U.S.-Japan alliance. The Chair was founded in Spring 2009 under the leadership of General H.R. McMaster who now serves as chair of its advisory board.

Hamilton Commission on Securing America’s National Security Innovation Base

The Hudson Institute houses this bipartisan commission which explores economic sectors critical to national security with the purpose of proposing policy recommendations to reduce dependence and advance U.S. leadership in these industries.

The commission is chaired by Nadia Schadlow and Arthur L. Herman. The other members are:

• Bryan Clark, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute
• Thomas Duesterberg, Senior Fellow, Hudson Institute
• Mike Gallagher, Member, U.S. House of Representatives (R-WI)  
• Sridhar Kota, Herrick Professor of Engineering, Professor of Mechanical Engineering at University of Michigan
• Zara F. Larsen, President, The Larsen Group: Architects of Change
• Ellen Lord, former Undersecretary of Defense for Acquisition and Sustainment
• Dale Lumme, National Executive Director, American Society of Naval Engineers
• Stephanie Murphy, Former Member, House of Representatives (D-FL)  
• Scott Paul, President, Alliance for American Manufacturing (AAM)
• Heather Penney, Senior Resident Fellow, Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies
• Kimberly Reed, former President and Chairman of the Board of Directors, Export-Import Bank of the United States (EXIM)
• Pavneet Singh, Nonresident Fellow, the John L. Thornton China Center at Brookings Institution
• Willy Shih, Robert and Jane Cizik Professor of Management Practice in Business Administration, Harvard Business School
• Anthony Vinci, Adjunct Senior Fellow, Center for a New American Security (CNAS)
• Lt. Gen. Eric J. Wesley, Executive Vice President, Flyer Defense, LLC.
• Michael R. Wessel, President, The Wessel Group

Kleptocracy Initiative

Hudson launched the Kleptocracy Initiative in response to Russia's first invasion and occupation of Ukrainian Crimea in 2014.

In 2016, Hudson's Kleptocracy Initiative issued a report, authored by Ben Judah, sounding the alarm about offshore financial flows, and calling for the end of anonymous shell companies as a US national security priority. The Hudson Institute received criticism by a member of its Kleptocracy Initiative advisory board when its 2018 awards gala was funded in part by Len Blavatnik, a magnate who had business dealings with Russian oligarchs who were on the United States sanctions list.

Funding

2019 finances:

Notable personnel

Other notable persons

See also

• Discovery Institute

Notes

References

Further reading

• Blum, Ruthie. "Who's Right?" The Jerusalem Post, February 17, 2005: 13. (Free summary from fee-based archive.)
• Hadar, Leon T. "Special Report: The 'Neocons': From the Cold War to the 'Global Intifada' ". The Washington Report on Middle East Affairs 9.11 (Apr. 1991): 27. (Archived.)
• Hutchinson, Bill, with Michael McAuliff. "Cheney Eyed Israeli Strike on Iranian Nuclear Reactor – Mag". The New York Daily News, September 24, 2007, Nation/World: 7. (Archived.)
• Kirkpatrick, David D. "Lack of Resolution in Iraq Finds Conservatives Divided". The New York Times, April 19, 2004: A21.
• Lynch, Frederic R. "Workforce Diversity: PC's Final Frontier? – Political Correctness – Demystifying Multiculturalism". National Review, February 21, 1994: 32. (Accessed via findarticles.com.)
• White, Andrew. "New York in the 1960s". The American Prospect, October 22, 2001: 40. [Book rev. of The Ungovernable City: John Lindsay and His Struggle to Save New York, by Vincent J. Cannato (New York: Basic Books, 2001).]

External links

• Official website
• "Hudson Institute Internal Revenue Service filings". ProPublica Nonprofit Explorer.