Editing American Enterprise Institute (section)

===Foreign and defense policy studies===
AEI's foreign and defense policy studies researchers focus on "how political and economic freedom—as well as American interests—are best promoted around the world".<ref name="AR" /> AEI staff have tended to be advocates of a hard U.S. line on threats or potential threats to the United States, including the [[Soviet Union]] during the [[Cold War]], [[Saddam Hussein]]'s [[Iraq]], the [[People's Republic of China]], [[North Korea]], [[Iran]], [[Syria]], [[Venezuela]], [[Russia]], and terrorist or militant groups like [[al Qaeda]] and [[Hezbollah]]. Likewise, AEI staff have promoted closer U.S. ties with countries whose interests or values they view as aligned with America's, such as [[Israel]], the [[Republic of China]] (Taiwan), [[India]], [[Australia]], [[Japan]], [[Mexico]], [[Colombia]], the [[Philippines]], the [[United Kingdom]], and emerging [[post-Communist]] states such as [[Poland]].{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

AEI takes a pro-Israel stance. In 2015 it awarded Israeli Prime Minister [[Benjamin Netanyahu]] its 'Irving Kristol Award'.<ref name=aei.org>{{cite web |title=Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to receive 2015 AEI Irving Kristol Award |url=https://www.aei.org/press/israeli-prime-minister-benjamin-netanyahu-to-receive-2015-aei-irving-kristol-award/ |publisher=aei.org |access-date=January 13, 2023 |archive-date=January 13, 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230113185834/https://www.aei.org/press/israeli-prime-minister-benjamin-netanyahu-to-receive-2015-aei-irving-kristol-award/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

AEI's foreign and defense policy studies department, directed by [[Danielle Pletka]], is the part of the institute most commonly associated with neoconservatism.<ref name="Schifferes" /> According to ''[[Vanity Fair (magazine)|Vanity Fair]]'', in 2002 it was seen "as the intellectual command post of the neoconservative campaign for [[regime change]] in [[Iraq]]".<ref name="k448"/> Prominent foreign-policy neoconservatives at AEI include [[Richard Perle]], [[Gary Schmitt]], and [[Paul Wolfowitz]].{{citation needed|date=September 2024}} [[Joshua Muravchik]] and [[Michael Ledeen]] (the latter seen as an "ultra neo-conservative"<ref name="s398">{{cite web | title=Michael Ledeen | website=BBC NEWS | date=18 May 2003 | url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/programmes/panorama/3031803.stm | access-date=5 September 2024}}</ref>) spent many years at AEI, although they departed at around the same time as [[Reuel Marc Gerecht]] in 2008 in what was rumored to be a "purge" of neoconservatives at the institute, possibly "signal[ing] the end of [neoconservatism's] domination over the think tank over the past several decades",<ref name="Heilbrunn-2">{{cite news|last=Heilbrunn|first=Jacob|author-link=Jacob Heilbrunn|date=December 19, 2008|title=Flight of the Neocons|periodical=The National Interest|url=http://www.nationalinterest.org/Article.aspx?id=20400|access-date=April 8, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417213901/http://www.nationalinterest.org/Article.aspx?id=20400|archive-date=April 17, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> although Muravchik later said it was the result of personality and management conflicts.<ref name="Weigel">{{cite news|last=Weigel|first=David|author-link=David Weigel|date=March 11, 2009|title=Former AEI Scholar Blasts Danielle Pletka|periodical=The Washington Independent|url=http://washingtonindependent.com/33489/former-aei-scholar-blasts-danielle-pletka|access-date=June 12, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090620103121/http://washingtonindependent.com/33489/former-aei-scholar-blasts-danielle-pletka|archive-date=June 20, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref>

====U.S. national security strategy, defense policy, and the "surge"====
In late 2006, the security situation in Iraq continued to deteriorate, and the [[Iraq Study Group]] proposed a phased withdrawal of U.S. troops and further engagement of Iraq's neighbors. Consulting with AEI's Iraq Planning Group, [[Frederick W. Kagan]] published an AEI report entitled ''Choosing Victory: A Plan for Success in Iraq'' calling for "phase one" of a change in strategy to focus on "clearing and holding" neighborhoods and securing the population; a troop escalation of seven Army brigades and Marine regiments; and a renewed emphasis on reconstruction, economic development, and jobs.<ref name="Choosing Victory">{{cite web|last=Kagan|first=Frederick W.|author-link=Frederick W. Kagan|title=Choosing Victory: A Plan for Success in Iraq|version=Phase I Report|website=American Enterprise Institute|date=January 5, 2007|url=http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.25396/pub_detail.asp|access-date=April 8, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090408021749/http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.25396/pub_detail.asp|archive-date=April 8, 2009|url-status=dead }}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=September 2024}}

While the report was being drafted, Kagan and Keane were briefing President Bush, Vice President Cheney, and other senior Bush administration officials behind the scenes. According to [[Bob Woodward]], "[[Peter Schoomaker|[Peter J.] Schoomaker]] was outraged when he saw news coverage that retired Gen. [[Jack Keane]], the former Army vice chief of staff, had briefed the president on December 11 about a new Iraq strategy being proposed by the American Enterprise Institute, the [[conservative think tank]]. 'When does AEI start trumping the [[Joint Chiefs of Staff]] on this stuff?' Schoomaker asked at the next chiefs' meeting."<ref name="WarWithin">{{cite book|last=Woodward|first=Bob|author-link=Bob Woodward|title=The War Within: A Secret White House History 2006–2008|url=https://archive.org/details/warwithinsecretw00wood_0|url-access=registration|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=2008|location=New York|isbn=9781416558989 }}</ref>

Kagan, Keane, and Senators [[John McCain]] and [[Joseph Lieberman]] presented the plan at a January 5, 2007, event at AEI. Bush announced the [[Iraq War troop surge of 2007|change of strategy]] on January 10.<ref name="NYT-Surge">{{cite news|last=Gordon|first=Michael R.|title=Troop 'Surge' Took Place Amid Doubt and Debate|work=The New York Times|date=August 30, 2008|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/31/washington/31military.html|access-date=April 8, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090310155552/http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/31/washington/31military.html|archive-date=March 10, 2009|url-status=live}}</ref> Kagan authored three subsequent reports monitoring the progress of the surge.<ref>{{cite web|last=Kagan|first=Frederick W.|author-link=Frederick W. Kagan|title=Choosing Victory: A Plan for Success in Iraq|version=Phase II Report|website=American Enterprise Institute|date=April 25, 2007|url=http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.26028/pub_detail.asp|access-date=April 8, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090409000536/http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.26028/pub_detail.asp|archive-date=April 9, 2009|url-status=dead }}; {{cite web|last=Kagan|first=Frederick W.|author-link=Frederick W. Kagan|title=No Middle Way: The Challenge of Exit Strategies from Iraq|version=Phase III Report|website=American Enterprise Institute|date=September 6, 2007|url=http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.26760/pub_detail.asp|access-date=April 8, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090409000545/http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.26760/pub_detail.asp|archive-date=April 9, 2009|url-status=dead }}; {{cite web|last=Kagan|first=Frederick W.|author-link=Frederick W. Kagan|title=Iraq: The Way Ahead|version=Phase IV Report|website=American Enterprise Institute|date=March 24, 2008|url=http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.27686/pub_detail.asp|access-date=April 8, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090409000611/http://www.aei.org/publications/pubID.27686/pub_detail.asp|archive-date=April 9, 2009|url-status=dead }}</ref>

AEI's defense policy researchers, who also include Schmitt and [[Giselle Donnelly|Thomas Donnelly]], also work on issues related to the [[U.S. Armed Forces|U.S. military forces]]' size and structure and military partnerships with allies (both bilaterally and through institutions such as [[NATO]]). Schmitt directs AEI's Program on Advanced Strategic Studies, which "analyzes the long-term issues that will impact America's security and its ability to lead internationally".<ref name="Highlight"/>

====Area studies====
{{primary sources|section|date=September 2024}}
Its Asia studies program is directed by [[Dan Blumenthal]]. The program covers "the [[rise of China]] as an economic and political power; [[Taiwan]]'s security and economic agenda; [[Japan]]'s military transformation; the threat of a [[nuclear North Korea]]; and the impact of regional alliances and rivalries on U.S. military and economic relationships in Asia".<ref name="Highlight"/><ref>{{Cite web |title=AEI Expands Asian Studies Program |url=https://www.aei.org/articles/aei-expands-asian-studies-program/ |access-date=2023-10-17 |website=American Enterprise Institute - AEI |language=en-US}}</ref> Blumenthal and his team wrote several articles for [[ForeignPolicy.com]] and other outlets during the Obama presidency advocating for military support and funding for Taiwan.<ref name="NationTaiwan">{{cite magazine | url=https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/secret-foreign-donor-behind-american-enterprise-institute/ | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200319083252/https://www.thenation.com/article/archive/secret-foreign-donor-behind-american-enterprise-institute/ | archive-date=March 19, 2020 | title=The Secret Foreign Donor Behind the American Enterprise Institute | date=June 25, 2013 | last=Clifton | first=Eli |magazine=[[The Nation]] }}</ref>

Papers in AEI's Tocqueville on China Project series "elicit the underlying civic culture of post-[[Mao Zedong|Mao]] China, enabling policymakers to better understand the internal forces and pressures that are shaping China's future".<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.aei.org/publication/why-tocqueville-on-china/ | title=Why Tocqueville on China? | last=Ceaser | first=James W. | date=January 25, 2010 | website=American Enterprise Institute | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160206185253/http://www.aei.org/publication/why-tocqueville-on-china/ | archive-date=February 6, 2016 | access-date=October 18, 2018 }}</ref>

AEI's Europe program was previously housed under the auspices of the [[New Atlantic Initiative]], which was directed by [[Radek Sikorski]] before his return to Polish politics in 2005.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}} [[Leon Aron]]'s work forms the core of the institute's program on Russia. AEI staff tend to view Russia as posing "strategic challenges for the West".<ref name="Highlight"/>

[[Mark Falcoff]], now retired, was previously AEI's resident Latinamericanist, focusing on the [[Southern Cone]], [[Panama]], and [[Cuba]]. He has warned that the road for Cuba after [[Fidel Castro]]'s rule or the lifting of the [[United States embargo against Cuba|U.S. trade embargo]] would be difficult for an island scarred by a half-century of poverty and civil turmoil.<ref>{{cite book|last=Falcoff|first=Mark|author-link=Mark Falcoff|title=Cuba the Morning After: Confronting Castro's Legacy|publisher=AEI Press|year=2003|location=Washington}}</ref> [[Roger Noriega]]'s focuses at AEI are on Venezuela, [[Brazil]], the [[Mérida Initiative]] with Mexico and [[Central America]],<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.aei.org/events/eventID.1584/event_detail.asp | title=Battling the Deadly Drug Cartels in Mexico: A Shared Responsibility | date=November 8, 2007 | website=American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090417232934/http://www.aei.org/events/eventID.1584/event_detail.asp | archive-date=April 17, 2009 | access-date=October 18, 2018 }}</ref> and hemispheric relations.

AEI has historically devoted significant attention to the [[Middle East]], especially through the work of former resident scholars Ledeen and Muravchik. Pletka's research focus also includes the Middle East, and she coordinated a conference series on empowering democratic dissidents and advocates in the Arab World.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Azarva|first1=Jeffrey|first2=Danielle|last2=Pletka|last3=Rubin|first3=Michael|title=Dissent and Reform in the Arab World: Empowering Democrats|publisher=AEI Press|year=2008|location=Washington}}</ref> In 2009, AEI launched the Critical Threats Project, led by Kagan, to "highlight the complexity of the global challenges the United States faces with a primary focus on Iran and al Qaeda's global influence".<ref name="Highlight"/> The project includes IranTracker.org,<ref name="IranTracker">{{cite web|url=http://www.irantracker.org/|title=Critical Threats|website=Critical Threats|access-date=April 5, 2018|archive-date=January 30, 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170130055928/http://www.irantracker.org/|url-status=live}}</ref> with contributions from [[Ali Alfoneh]], [[Ahmad Majidyar]] and [[Michael Rubin (historian)|Michael Rubin]], among others.

====International organizations and economic development====
{{primary sources|section|date=September 2024}}
For several years, AEI and the [[Federalist Society]] cosponsored [[NGOWatch]], which was later subsumed into Global Governance Watch, "a web-based resource that addresses issues of transparency and accountability in the [[United Nations]], [[nongovernmental organization|NGOs]], and related international organizations".<ref name="Highlight"/> NGOWatch returned as a subsite of Global Governance Watch, led by [[Jon Entine]]. AEI scholars focusing on international organizations includes [[John R. Bolton|John Bolton]], the former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations,<ref>{{cite book|last=Bolton|first=John R.|author-link=John R. Bolton|title=Surrender Is Not an Option: Defending America at the United Nations and Abroad|publisher=Simon and Schuster|year=2007|location=New York}}</ref> and [[John Yoo]], who researches [[international law]] and sovereignty.<ref name="Highlight"/>

AEI's research on [[economic development]] dates back to the early days of the institute. [[P. T. Bauer]] authored a monograph on development in [[India]] in 1959,<ref>{{cite book|last=Bauer|first=P. T.|author-link=P. T. Bauer|title=United States Aid and Indian Economic Development|publisher=AEI Press|year=1959|location=Washington|url=http://www.aei.org/book/876|access-date=June 12, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090612211858/http://www.aei.org/book/876|archive-date=June 12, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> and [[Edward C. Banfield|Edward Banfield]] published a booklet on the theory behind foreign aid in 1970.<ref>{{cite book|last=Banfield|first=Edward C.|author-link=Edward C. Banfield|title=American Foreign Aid Doctrines|publisher=AEI Press|year=1970|location=Washington|url=http://www.aei.org/book/873|access-date=June 12, 2009|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090612211921/http://www.aei.org/book/873|archive-date=June 12, 2009|url-status=dead}}</ref> Since 2001, AEI has sponsored the Henry Wendt Lecture in International Development, named for Henry Wendt, an AEI trustee emeritus and former CEO of [[SmithKline Beckman]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.aei.org/eventSeries/18|title=- AEI|website=AEI|date=October 19, 2012|access-date=June 10, 2018|archive-date=April 2, 2012|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120402014506/http://www.aei.org/eventSeries/18|url-status=live}}</ref>{{primary source inline|date=September 2024}} Notable lecturers have included [[Angus Maddison]] and [[Deepak Lal]].{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

[[Nicholas Eberstadt]] holds the Henry Wendt Chair, focusing on [[demographics]], [[population growth]] and human capital development; he served on the federal [[HELP Commission]].<ref>{{Cite news |last=Eberstadt |first=Nicholas |date=2024-05-08 |title=East Asia's Coming Population Collapse |url=https://www.foreignaffairs.com/china/east-asias-coming-population-collapse |access-date=2024-09-24 |work=Foreign Affairs |language=en-US |issn=0015-7120}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Nicholas Eberstadt {{!}} Scholars |url=https://www.aei.org/profile/nicholas-eberstadt/ |access-date=24 September 2024 |website=American Enterprise Institute}}</ref>

[[Paul Wolfowitz]], the former president of the [[World Bank]], researches development policy in Africa.{{citation needed|date=September 2024}}

[[Roger Bate]] focuses his research on [[malaria]], [[HIV/AIDS]], [[Counterfeit medications|counterfeit and substandard drugs]],<ref name="MAK">{{cite book|last=Bate|first=Roger|author-link=Roger Bate|title=Making a Killing|publisher=AEI Press|year=2008|location=Washington}}</ref> access to water,<ref>{{cite book|last=Bate|first=Roger|author-link=Roger Bate|title=All the Water in the World|publisher=Centre for Independent Studies|year=2006|location=St. Leonard's, Australia}}</ref> and other problems endemic in the developing world.{{primary source inline|date=September 2024}}