Flynt Leverett
Encyclopedia
Flynt Leverett is a senior fellow at the New America Foundation
in Washington, D.C.
and a professor at the Pennsylvania State University
School of International Affairs. From March 2002 to March 2003, he served as the senior director for Middle East affairs on the National Security Council
. Prior to serving on the NSC, he was a counterterrorism expert on the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, and before that he served as a CIA senior analyst for eight years. Since leaving government service, Leverett served as a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution
’s Saban Center for Middle East Policy
before becoming the director of the Geopolitics of Energy Initiative in the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation
.
, Leverett is required to seek prior approval of articles from the CIA
's Publication Review Board. Such reviews are conducted as a precaution to prevent leaks of classified information
.
On December 16, 2006 Leverett was denied permission to publish a 1,000 word opinion piece
, co-written with his wife, Hillary Mann and based on his previously approved 35 page paper "Dealing with Tehran: Assessing U.S. Diplomatic Options Toward Iran." The longer paper and its shorter piece are critical of the George W. Bush administration's refusal to engage in "comprehensive" negotiations with the government of Iran.
Leverett had intended to publish the shorter article in The New York Times
. In a statement to the online publication Talking Points Memo
, he disputed the official justification for the decision.
In the same statement, Leverett places the blame for quashing the op-ed piece on "White House staffers... working for Elliott Abrams
and Meghan O'Sullivan
, both politically appointed deputies to President Bush
's National Security Advisor
Stephen Hadley
."
New America Foundation
The New America Foundation is a non-profit public policy institute and think tank with offices in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento, CA. It was founded in 1999 by Ted Halstead, Sherle Schwenninger, Michael Lind and Walter Russell Mead....
in Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C.
Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
and a professor at the Pennsylvania State University
Pennsylvania State University
The Pennsylvania State University, commonly referred to as Penn State or PSU, is a public research university with campuses and facilities throughout the state of Pennsylvania, United States. Founded in 1855, the university has a threefold mission of teaching, research, and public service...
School of International Affairs. From March 2002 to March 2003, he served as the senior director for Middle East affairs on the National Security Council
United States National Security Council
The White House National Security Council in the United States is the principal forum used by the President of the United States for considering national security and foreign policy matters with his senior national security advisors and Cabinet officials and is part of the Executive Office of the...
. Prior to serving on the NSC, he was a counterterrorism expert on the State Department’s Policy Planning Staff, and before that he served as a CIA senior analyst for eight years. Since leaving government service, Leverett served as a visiting fellow at the Brookings Institution
Brookings Institution
The Brookings Institution is a nonprofit public policy organization based in Washington, D.C., in the United States. One of Washington's oldest think tanks, Brookings conducts research and education in the social sciences, primarily in economics, metropolitan policy, governance, foreign policy, and...
’s Saban Center for Middle East Policy
Saban Center for Middle East Policy
The Saban Center for Middle East Policy is a center within the Brookings Institution focused on the United States' involvement in the Middle East...
before becoming the director of the Geopolitics of Energy Initiative in the American Strategy Program at the New America Foundation
New America Foundation
The New America Foundation is a non-profit public policy institute and think tank with offices in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento, CA. It was founded in 1999 by Ted Halstead, Sherle Schwenninger, Michael Lind and Walter Russell Mead....
.
Op-ed controversy
As a former national security official granted a security clearanceSecurity clearance
A security clearance is a status granted to individuals allowing them access to classified information, i.e., state secrets, or to restricted areas after completion of a thorough background check. The term "security clearance" is also sometimes used in private organizations that have a formal...
, Leverett is required to seek prior approval of articles from the CIA
Central Intelligence Agency
The Central Intelligence Agency is a civilian intelligence agency of the United States government. It is an executive agency and reports directly to the Director of National Intelligence, responsible for providing national security intelligence assessment to senior United States policymakers...
's Publication Review Board. Such reviews are conducted as a precaution to prevent leaks of classified information
Classified information
Classified information is sensitive information to which access is restricted by law or regulation to particular groups of persons. A formal security clearance is required to handle classified documents or access classified data. The clearance process requires a satisfactory background investigation...
.
On December 16, 2006 Leverett was denied permission to publish a 1,000 word opinion piece
Editorial
An opinion piece is an article, published in a newspaper or magazine, that mainly reflects the author's opinion about the subject. Opinion pieces are featured in many periodicals.-Editorials:...
, co-written with his wife, Hillary Mann and based on his previously approved 35 page paper "Dealing with Tehran: Assessing U.S. Diplomatic Options Toward Iran." The longer paper and its shorter piece are critical of the George W. Bush administration's refusal to engage in "comprehensive" negotiations with the government of Iran.
Leverett had intended to publish the shorter article in The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
. In a statement to the online publication Talking Points Memo
Talking Points Memo
Talking Points Memo is a web-based political journalism organization created and run by Josh Marshall, journalist and historian covering issues from a "politically left perspective,". It debuted on November 12, 2000...
, he disputed the official justification for the decision.
In the same statement, Leverett places the blame for quashing the op-ed piece on "White House staffers... working for Elliott Abrams
Elliott Abrams
Elliott Abrams is an American attorney and neoconservative policy analyst who served in foreign policy positions for two Republican U.S. Presidents, Ronald Reagan and George W. Bush. While serving for Reagan and in the State Department, Abrams, Paul Wolfowitz, and retired U.S. Marine Corps officer...
and Meghan O'Sullivan
Meghan O'Sullivan
Meghan L. O'Sullivan is a former deputy national security adviser on Iraq and Afghanistan and now a lecturer and senior fellow at Harvard University's John F...
, both politically appointed deputies to President Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
's National Security Advisor
National Security Advisor (United States)
The Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs, commonly referred to as the National Security Advisor , serves as the chief advisor to the President of the United States on national security issues...
Stephen Hadley
Stephen Hadley
Stephen John Hadley was the 21st U.S. Assistant to the President for National Security Affairs , serving under President George W. Bush....
."
Books
- Inheriting Syria: Bashar's Trial By Fire a study of politics and policymaking in SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, ISBN 0815752032 - The Road Ahead: Middle East Policy in the Bush Administration's Second Term (edited by Leverett with contributions from Kenneth PollackKenneth PollackKenneth Michael Pollack, PhD , is a noted former CIA intelligence analyst and expert on Middle East politics and military affairs. He has served on the National Security Council staff and has written several articles and books on international relations.Pollack obtained a BA from Yale University,...
, James SteinbergJames SteinbergJames Braidy "Jim" Steinberg is an American academic and political advisor, and former Deputy Secretary of State. He is currently Dean and Professor of Social Science, International Affairs, and Law at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs at Syracuse University.-Early career:He...
, Shibley TelhamiShibley TelhamiShibley Telhami is the Anwar Sadat Professor for Peace and Development at the University of Maryland, College Park, and a nonresident senior fellow of the Saban Center for Middle East Policy at the Brookings Institution....
, and Martin IndykMartin IndykMartin Sean Indyk is Vice President and Director for Foreign Policy at the Brookings Institution in Washington, D.C. Indyk served as United States ambassador to Israel and Assistant Secretary of State for Near East Affairs during the Clinton Administration. He is known as the framer of the U.S...
), ISBN 0815752059
External links
- Profile at New America FoundationNew America FoundationThe New America Foundation is a non-profit public policy institute and think tank with offices in Washington, D.C. and Sacramento, CA. It was founded in 1999 by Ted Halstead, Sherle Schwenninger, Michael Lind and Walter Russell Mead....
- Bush Administration Guilty of Strategic Malpractice - Expert
- How Bush Bungled The War on Terror? Flynt Leverett in Democracy Now
- Biography at New American Foundation
- Publications on the Brookings Institute Website by Flynt L. Leverett
- The Story of Leverett and Mann by Our World in Balance
- Video (with mp3 available) of conversation with Leverett and David FrumDavid FrumDavid J. Frum is a Canadian American journalist active in both the United States and Canadian political arenas. A former economic speechwriter for President George W. Bush, he is also the author of the first "insider" book about the Bush presidency...
on Bloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tvBloggingheads.tv is a political, world events, philosophy, and science video blog discussion site in which the participants take part in an active back and forth conversation via webcam which is then broadcast online to viewers...