The "Nonpartisan" "Common Sense" Institute
Is using the University of Iowa's Women's Basketball team
Photo courtesy of the University of Iowa
The Gazette reports that the Common Sense Insitute (CSI) think tank has opened an Iowa Chapter. From the Gazette:
This chapter joins existing counterparts in Colorado and Arizona, as well as a recently established chapter in Oregon. It bills itself as a data-driven entity that cuts through politics and special interests to bridge gaps by arming the public with facts.
Kristin Strohm, president and chief executive officer of the Common Sense Institute, said a team of economists and policy experts at the institute will provide facts on the most pressing issues of the day. Its infrastructure of technical expertise will allow the think tank to give citizens a “clear detailed view of what laws and legislation actually mean in the real world,” Strohm said.
The group bills itself as nonpartisan and launched its new Iowa branch Thursday at the Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance’s annual meeting.
One of their future studies is interesting, fun, and ostensibly nonpartisan. The economic impact Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Women’s Basketball team have on our economy. What a great idea!
But can we accept at face value that the institute itself is nonpartisan? The answer is no.
Our first clue is that Paige Thorson, Governor Kim Reynolds’ former deputy chief of staff, will serve as the organization’s strategic adviser. How can a “nonpartisan” organization with a partisan strategic advisor be nonpartisan?
Now look at their board of directors.
Joe Murphy, Iowa Business Council (board chair)
Gavin Blair, Iowa Association of Realtors
Heidi Leavengood, Ruan Transportation Management Systems, Inc.
Amber Mason Lusson, Community Leader
Doug Neumann, Cedar Rapids Metro Economic Alliance
John Sorensen, Iowa Bankers Association
I read all of their bios, and all are accomplished professionals and they would likely be assets to any board of directors (this column isn’t directed at these individuals personally--just at the institute they have been asked to be a part of, and I have no reason to doubt that all of the board members above are well-intentioned).
But what political party do they belong to? If the majority are Republican, I doubt the topics they address and the conclusions they bring will be nonpartisan. Especially if Governor Reynolds’ former deputy chief of staff is a strategic advisor.
And if they want to provide a “clear detailed view of what laws and legislation actually mean in the real world,” how much experience do these apparently affluent business executives and community leaders have with the real world the majority of Iowans live in?
Let’s give them the benefit of the doubt and say they know something about it. But, if they want to understand how legislation impacts Iowans in the “real world,” why is the board of directors constituted by only business leaders? Only Lusson appears to have a different career path, which is in law enforcement. Why are there no leaders in education, labor, immigration, poverty and hunger, agriculture, the environment, or human rights? Why no rural leaders? People in these spaces should be represented--not just business interests if you truly want to know how legislation impacts Iowans. That the institution is packed with urban business leaders suggests their efforts will be pro-business, and pro-big city, which is not necessarily pro-Iowan.
And why no minority representation on the board? Does the parent organization in Colorado not recognize that Black, Hispanic, Asian, and other minority leaders have wisdom and real-world experiences that differ from affluent white Iowans who would bring value to the board?
How can an organization that purports to be the “Common Sense” Institute not have the common sense to have broad representation from Iowans?
The group isn’t nonpartisan. It’s at best conservative, which is okay, but just admit to it. Don’t try to fool us with the “nonpartisan” crap. And, some of their allies introduce radical legislation that may be in the best interests of some of the business community, but not Iowans in general.
Westword is a digital and print media publication based in Denver, Colorado where CSI is based. Westword reports that the critics of their organization say the reports of CSI are “nonsense,” and “ the organization's research is driven ideologically toward a certain conclusion, then works backward for the desired results.” Westword also lays out the Republican roots of the organization.
Let’s dig a little deeper. Influence Watch reports that:
CSI is an associate member of the State Policy Network, a coalition of free-market, state-level policy organizations.
And that:
The State Policy Network (SPN) is a network of 167 conservative and libertarian think tanks throughout the United States and Canada. The SPN coordinates efforts to support policy goals, raise funds, and amplify the influence of its members…
The SPN has close ties to the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) with the two organizations sharing many members, and the SPN supporting policies formulated by ALEC and its members.
The American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) is a right-of-center nonprofit think tank that also functions as the nation’s largest voluntary membership association for state legislators. It also offers membership to private sector companies and think tanks. The group authors a variety of publications and utilizes member task forces to adopt model legislation, which is made publicly available on its website.
Of course, ALEC is the organization responsible for much Republican legislation nationwide, which is by no means nonpartisan. ALEC is a powerful Koch-funded organization that is a “bill mill” that has a hand in creating laws that are friendly to corporations but not to regular people.
One critic writes: “If Americans are behind bars in private prisons where you live, you can probably thank ALEC for that. If there are laws that make it hard for Black and brown Americans to vote where you live, you can thank ALEC. If there are laws where you live that make it a crime to protest against polluters and climate change, thank ALEC. And more and more frequently in the post-Dobbs world, the same goes for laws that criminalize and curtail abortion rights.”
The Chronicle of Higher Education reports that ALEC is one of the organizations that is “Behind the War on Academic Freedom: How Conservative Activists Use State Legislatures to Control what Colleges Can Teach.” Among their efforts are those to restrict efforts at Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, and prohibit speech that conservatives disagree with. It’s part of the legislation that makes it hard for teachers to teach troubling parts of our history, among other matters.
The fact that the entire board of the Common Sense Institute in Iowa is white is proof that Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion efforts are best practices and need to be taught. Does anyone think that these board members were the most qualified? That there was an open and fair search process by which they were chosen? That minority leaders were considered and deemed not as qualified? Of course not. They were likely picked to be on the board because of personal connections. Nudge nudge, wink wink. That’s how the world works unless we demand more.
The author of The Chronicle on Higher Education piece, Steven Brint, is a sociology and public policy professor at the University of California at Riverside. He writes:
At least since the time of Socrates, political authorities have sought to restrict intellectual inquiry when it has seemed to threaten their beliefs or interests. The principle of academic freedom is intended to ensure that professors are able to pursue their teaching and research within the sphere of their professional expertise free from the restrictions of outside authorities.
So, is the institute going to share what their research questions are, how they were formulated, and why? Are they going to share their methods and data? Submit their research to peer review? In the social science world in which they are operating that would be a “common sense” thing to do.
Or, is theirs a purely ideological agenda? Did they call themselves the “Common Sense” Institute as part of their brand, to hide their ideological agenda? The organization is partisan. Do they think they can fool us into believing that they’re nonpartisan just because they say so? Those Coloradans must think we Iowans aren’t very bright.
One of the topics the institute is going to address is the governors proposed tax cuts. I hope they address not only how much the public will save, but also much the tax cuts will hurt our already underfunded public schools and institutes of higher education, and their impact on our neglected infrastructure and mental health services. Also, will the tax cuts favor the rich over the middle class and the poor? Ignoring these and other impacts would be bad social science.
I have some other research questions for them. Are Republican private school vouchers hurting public schools? Did they help poor Iowans get into private schools, or were they a handout to the wealthy? What are the impacts of private schools having no accountability as to how public dollars are spent? How many teachers have left the profession or fled to other states since the last legislative session? How has limiting the power of the state auditor hurt that office’s efforts to hold government and other institutions accountable? What are the consequences of the Governor refusing to participate in the federal program that would give low-income families $40 per month to help with food costs when school is out? When kids go hungry because of Republican policies, what are the psychological and societal costs? I can give you dozens more if you wish.
These are common sense questions. Ideologically based? Maybe. But only if you believe in our public schools, fiscal responsibility, and feeding hungry kids.
Sure, they should do their study of the economic impact of Caitlin Clark and the Iowa Women’s Basketball team on our great state as their first effort. But they should be sure to let us know if they will be aligning with ALEC in their assault on higher education, including the University of Iowa and our other fine institutions. If so, the “Common Sense” Institute will have made a brilliant opening PR move, using these incredile young women to normalize their agenda and make it palatable to the Iowa public.
Using. These. Young. Women.
There’s nothing common sense or nonpartisan in the “Common Sense” Institute. Media, don’t be fooled.
The Common Sense Institute is a wolf in sheep’s clothing.
Prove me wrong. I hope I am.
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Robert Leonard continues to write some of the most important commentary for not only Iowa but our nation and world. This is the value of good journalism and public education. Digging in to understand not just what an organization says but what it does and who they are. And most importantly how they use the talent and work of others for their own ideological purposes. Worth the read whether you're an Iowan or not.
On the mark! Extreme right “think tanks” are running our state government. Talk about “deep state”. I’m sure it’s coincidental that the governors of Texas Florida, Texas, Missouri, Iowa, Arkansas etc all come up with cookie cutter legislation at the same time. School vouchers, abortion, lgbt issues, feeding poor kids etc all arrive at governors offices in neat packages from their Koch/Alec handlers.
The overreaching influence of Alec, Heritage Foundation, etc on the oped sections and legislative back rooms is a true threat to democracy.