![]() “I believe our past accomplishments and plans for the future merit such a substantial contribution,” Smith wrote in his letter to Thomas J. In September 1995, Smith requested an additional $200,000 contribution from Phillip Morris. “Philip Morris’s contribution will enable CEI to expand our efforts in well-established areas as our Human Cost of Regulation program and other regulatory reform projects,” the memo read. In an October 1994 memo, Smith thanked Philip Morris for a contribution of $150,000. Maura Payne of RJ Reynolds Tobacco for “ RJR‘s continued support”, adding “your personal involvement has meant a lot to our battles over the last 16 years.” The letter concludes, “I know you have contributed between $20,000 to $50,000 over the years.” For example, in a October 2000 memo, Fred L. Smith has regularly requested financial aid from tobacco companies like Philip Morris and The Tobacco Institute, according to records from the Truth Tobacco Industry Documents archive. For example, at the 2004 American Conservative Union ( ACU) annual conference, Smith said on a panel regarding tobacco regulation that one should consider the “threats these regulations pose to individual liberty.” He described smoking itself as a “symbol of freedom.” Smith and the Competitive Enterprise Institute have a history of fighting against tobacco regulation. Together, DT and DCF have been described as the “dark money ATM” of the Conservative movement. More than $5 million comes from the secretive DonorsTrust ( DT) and $1 million from its sister organization, Donors Capital Fund ( DCF). Public tax documents also show that ExxonMobil has contributed over $1.5 million to CEI. Google and Facebook were also major sponsors. While the CEI doesn’t reveal its funding sources, the Washington Post looked at a sample of donors at CEI‘s annual dinner which included energy companies Marathon Petroleum, Koch Industries, American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, and American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers ( AFPM). Smith founded the Competitive Enterprise Institute to hit “the proper targets-The hearts and minds of Americans,” in the words of a 1995 National Journal article. The article listed CEI alongside organizations such as Citizens for a Sound Economy ( CSE), the Institute for Justice, the Progress & Freedom Foundation, and the Alexis de Tocqueville Institution, “unabashedly conservative or libertarian” think tanks that often receive contributions from business interests with a stake in the issues they are researching. Smith is a self-described “knee-jerk-liberal”-turned-free-market-conservative. He is a member of the Foundation for Economic Education’s Faculty Network. He is a Board member at CEI as well as the American Conservative Union ( ACU), and the American Council on Science and Health ( ACSH). Smith’s former positions include Director of Government Relations for the Council for a Competitive Economy, senior economist for the Association of American Railroads, and Senior Policy Analyst at the EPA. He served as CEI‘s President from 1984 until 2013, later working as the Director of CEI‘s Center for Advancing Capitalism. Smith is the founder of the Competitive Enterprise Institute ( CEI). Bachelor’s of Science in Theoretical Mathematics and Political Science from Tulane University. ![]()
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