Council for National Policy

The Council for National Policy (CNP), based in Fairfax, Virginia, was founded in 1981 by Tim LaHaye, an anti-Catholic, social conservative author of the bestselling Left Behind apocalyptic novels in the United States, which have sold over 60 million copies.[1] The Council is “a secretive group of wealthy donors that has funnelled billions of dollars to right-wing Christian activists.”[2] The New York Times calls it a “club of a few hundred of the most powerful conservatives in the country,”[3] that share ultra-conservative ideas and anti-communist, pro-military sentiment and enjoy special access to the Bush White House.

The Reverend Jerry Falwell, a founder of the anti-abortion Moral Majority and himself a member of the CNP,[4] credits Mr. LeHaye with the politicization of social conservatives in the late 1970s: “I found out that he’d done something no conservative minister had ever done before: He’s organized hundreds of churches into a political bloc. At the time, I’d never heard of mixing religion and politics,” Rev. Falwell said in an interview with Rolling Stone.[5] Mr. LeHaye, in turn, encouraged Rev. Falwell to translate his own belief into political activism: “More than any other person, Tim LeHaye challenged me to being thinking through my involvement [in politics],” Rev. Falwell said.[6]

At its meetings, the CNP “unites right-wing billionaires with scores of conservative Christian activists and politicians, and these encounters have spawned countless campaigns and organizations.”[7] Its meetings are closed to the public and off limits to the media, guests may only attend meetings if they receive unanimous approval from the group’s Executive Committee.[8] Previous speakers who have addressed the Council include Secretary of Defence Donald Rumsfeld,[9] then Governor George W. Bush,[10] and Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas.[11] Alberta Economic Development Minister Mark Norris addressed the group in 2003 about the Alberta oil sands.[12] Rev. Falwell speculates that the CNP has been the key organization behind the power of social conservatives in the United States: “My guess is that literally billions of dollars have been utilized through the Council for National Policy that would not otherwise have been available.”[13] The group has also “funded an army of Christian organizers,” Rev. Falwell said.[14] 

Conservative Leader Stephen Harper addressed the CNP in Montreal in June 1997.[15]  When asked about this speech, Mr. Harper equated the activities of the CNP with the activities of the National Citizens Coalition, the advocacy group Mr. Harper headed at the time of his 1997 address, saying, “I was the leader of one conservative organization addressing another conservative organization.”[16] The content of Mr. Harper’s address is notable given his recent statement that he is fundamentally the same thinker he was 10 years ago: “I don’t think my fundamental beliefs have changed in a decade,” Mr. Harper told the Globe and Mail in the beginning of January.[17] Mr. Harper told the CNP audience, “your conservative movement…is a light and an inspiration to people in [Canada] and across the world.”[18]