A leader of the American Action Network says the Republican “think-and-do-tank” launching this month hopes to have a physical space in Washington very soon, and is working on fundraising and staffing up.
That’s according to Doug Holtz-Eakin, the former CBO director and McCain campaign adviser who will lead the policy shop of American Action Network.
The initial focus will be jobs and the budget, “but I would envision us having a domestic policy footprint that includes health care, education, the environment — and eventually a national security component,” Holtz-Eakin told TPM this morning. “It’s going to depend on our ability to staff.”
Holtz-Eakin said the group would kick off its inaugural jobs forum on Feb. 23 with a full range of views, “from the left to the right.” We reported earlier that Holtz-Eakin said SEIU president Andy Stern had accepted an invitation to attend. But SEIU spokeswoman Michelle Ringuette says Stern will not be attending as he has a conflict that day.
Holtz-Eakin also said Jared Bernstein, economic policy adviser to Joe Biden, will come to the forum; Bernstein’s office has not responded to a request for comment.
“It’s a place where I would hope everyone could come and share their ideas,” Holtz-Eakin says.
Leaders of the new think tank plan to both craft policy and advocate for political candidates. Its chairman is former Senator Norm Coleman. The group is currently looking for a physical space in Washington and hopes to move in somewhere “very soon.”
Asked whether AAN’s leaders see gaps left by other conservative think tanks like the Heritage Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute, Holtz-Eakin said: “I see a niche in that we can engage in public education, especially of new demographics that have failed to understand that conservatives share the progressive goals of health care that doesn’t cost as much, insurance for more people, and environmental objectives. We simply have our own set of policies that history has indicated work much better.”
The IRS has approved the non-profit policy arm of American Action Network for tax-exempt status and it currently employs two people: Holtz-Eakin and Cameron Smith, a public policy masters who worked at Holtz-Eakin’s consulting firm.
(This post has been updated to include comment from SEIU.)
