Jeffrey Bell (disambiguation)
Encyclopedia
Jeffrey L. Bell is an author and Republican political consultant.
Bell, the former president of the Manhattan Institute
, ran for the U.S. Senate from New Jersey
in 1978 and 1982. Bell also worked as an aide to U.S. Presidents Ronald Reagan
and Richard Nixon
, and to U.S. Representative Congressman Jack Kemp
of New York State. Bell has served as a fellow of the Kennedy School of Government
at Harvard, visiting professor at the Eagleton Institute of Politics
at Rutgers University
, and as the DeWitt Wallace Fellow in Communications at the American Enterprise Institute
in Washington. He presently serves on the board of directors of the American Conservative Union
and of the Campaign Finance Institute at George Washington University
. Bell is also a visiting scholar at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.
From 1988 to 2000, Bell served as president of Lehrman Bell Mueller Cannon, an economic and political forecasting company based in Arlington, Virginia. As a principal since 2000 with Capital City Partners, a public affairs firm, he participated in the firm's contract with the Department of Health and Human Services to promote greater awareness of human trafficking in the United States. Bell is a graduate of Columbia University
and a veteran of the Vietnam War
.
in the Republican presidential primaries
. In it, Reagan proposed a "systematic transfer of authority and resources to the states - a program of creative federalism for America's third century. Federal authority has clearly failed to do the job. Indeed, it has created more problems in welfare, education, housing, food stamps, Medicaid, community and regional development, and revenue sharing, to name a few. The sums involved and the potential savings to the taxpayer are large. Transfer of authority in whole or part in all of these areas would reduce the outlay of the federal government by more than $90 billion, using the spending levels of fiscal 1975. With such a savings it would be possible to balance the federal budget, make an initial $5 billion payment on the national debt and cut the federal personal income tax of every American by an average of 23 percent".
Bell's speech was intended to provide Reagan with a philosophical edge over President Gerald R. Ford, Jr. The Ford campaign, however, seized on it as evidence that in primary states like New Hampshire
which pay no state sales tax
or income tax
, the state would have to come up with its own funds for programs. Reagan lost the New Hampshire primary
to Ford, and the Bell speech was seen as largely to blame for backfiring on Reagan.
in the New Jersey primary. Bell defeated Case on June 6, 1978, the same day Proposition 13 passed in California (the East and West Coast tax revolts), on a platform of income tax rate reduction that foreshadowed the Reagan tax rate cuts of 1981. Bell lost the general election to Democrat
Bill Bradley
, 55-43 percent. Bell again ran for the Senate in 1982 but was defeated in the Republican primary by liberal Republican U.S. Representative Millicent Fenwick
. Fenwick was subsequently defeated in November by Democrat Frank Lautenberg
. (No Republican has been elected to the U.S. Senate in New Jersey since Case's last victory in 1972.)
and subsequent primaries. The commercials, which focused on Reagan's policy to fight inflation
by lowering taxes, were highly effective in boosting Reagan's popularity in the primary polls.
In The Reagan Revolution (Rowland Evans and Robert Novak, 1981), the effectiveness of these commercials is addressed -
in 1980. As deputy chairman of the pro-Reagan group Citizens for America
, Bell was actively involved in the passage of the Tax Reform Act of 1986
. In addition to his work on the 1980 Reagan campaign, Bell was on the national campaign staff for Richard Nixon in 1968 and Reagan in 1976. In 1988, Bell served as the national campaign coordinator for Kemp for President and in 2000 he worked as senior consultant to Gary Bauer
's short-lived presidential campaign.
, The Wall Street Journal
, and The Weekly Standard
. He is author of "Populism and Elitism: Politics in the Age of Equality," which Fred Barnes
, then with The New Republic
, called “the most important political book” of 1992. Bell lives with his wife and four children in Annandale
, Virginia.
On the death of his friend Jack Kemp in 2009, Bell penned a eulogy
crediting Kemp as the father of the economic policies of the Reagan administration, with Reagan as the principal architect of his own foreign policies.
Bell, the former president of the Manhattan Institute
Manhattan Institute
The Manhattan Institute for Policy Research is a conservative, market-oriented think tank established in New York City in 1978 by Antony Fisher and William J...
, ran for the U.S. Senate from New Jersey
New Jersey
New Jersey is a state in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States. , its population was 8,791,894. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York, on the southeast and south by the Atlantic Ocean, on the west by Pennsylvania and on the southwest by Delaware...
in 1978 and 1982. Bell also worked as an aide to U.S. Presidents Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
and Richard Nixon
Richard Nixon
Richard Milhous Nixon was the 37th President of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. The only president to resign the office, Nixon had previously served as a US representative and senator from California and as the 36th Vice President of the United States from 1953 to 1961 under...
, and to U.S. Representative Congressman Jack Kemp
Jack Kemp
Jack French Kemp was an American politician and a collegiate and professional football player. A Republican, he served as Housing Secretary in the administration of President George H. W. Bush from 1989 to 1993, having previously served nine terms as a congressman for Western New York's 31st...
of New York State. Bell has served as a fellow of the Kennedy School of Government
John F. Kennedy School of Government
The John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University is a public policy and public administration school, and one of Harvard's graduate and professional schools...
at Harvard, visiting professor at the Eagleton Institute of Politics
Eagleton Institute of Politics
The Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University was established in 1956 with an endowment from Florence Peshine Eagleton , and it focuses on state and national politics through education, and public service.-Background:...
at Rutgers University
Rutgers University
Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey , is the largest institution for higher education in New Jersey, United States. It was originally chartered as Queen's College in 1766. It is the eighth-oldest college in the United States and one of the nine Colonial colleges founded before the American...
, and as the DeWitt Wallace Fellow in Communications at the American Enterprise Institute
American Enterprise Institute
The American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research is a conservative think tank founded in 1943. Its stated mission is "to defend the principles and improve the institutions of American freedom and democratic capitalism—limited government, private enterprise, individual liberty and...
in Washington. He presently serves on the board of directors of the American Conservative Union
American Conservative Union
The American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
and of the Campaign Finance Institute at George Washington University
George Washington University
The George Washington University is a private, coeducational comprehensive university located in Washington, D.C. in the United States...
. Bell is also a visiting scholar at the Ethics and Public Policy Center.
From 1988 to 2000, Bell served as president of Lehrman Bell Mueller Cannon, an economic and political forecasting company based in Arlington, Virginia. As a principal since 2000 with Capital City Partners, a public affairs firm, he participated in the firm's contract with the Department of Health and Human Services to promote greater awareness of human trafficking in the United States. Bell is a graduate of Columbia University
Columbia University
Columbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
and a veteran of the Vietnam War
Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was a Cold War-era military conflict that occurred in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia from 1 November 1955 to the fall of Saigon on 30 April 1975. This war followed the First Indochina War and was fought between North Vietnam, supported by its communist allies, and the government of...
.
The $90 Billion Speech
In 1975 Bell was responsible for a speech given by Ronald Reagan when he was running against President Gerald FordGerald Ford
Gerald Rudolph "Jerry" Ford, Jr. was the 38th President of the United States, serving from 1974 to 1977, and the 40th Vice President of the United States serving from 1973 to 1974...
in the Republican presidential primaries
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....
. In it, Reagan proposed a "systematic transfer of authority and resources to the states - a program of creative federalism for America's third century. Federal authority has clearly failed to do the job. Indeed, it has created more problems in welfare, education, housing, food stamps, Medicaid, community and regional development, and revenue sharing, to name a few. The sums involved and the potential savings to the taxpayer are large. Transfer of authority in whole or part in all of these areas would reduce the outlay of the federal government by more than $90 billion, using the spending levels of fiscal 1975. With such a savings it would be possible to balance the federal budget, make an initial $5 billion payment on the national debt and cut the federal personal income tax of every American by an average of 23 percent".
Bell's speech was intended to provide Reagan with a philosophical edge over President Gerald R. Ford, Jr. The Ford campaign, however, seized on it as evidence that in primary states like New Hampshire
New Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
which pay no state sales tax
Sales tax
A sales tax is a tax, usually paid by the consumer at the point of purchase, itemized separately from the base price, for certain goods and services. The tax amount is usually calculated by applying a percentage rate to the taxable price of a sale....
or income tax
Income tax
An income tax is a tax levied on the income of individuals or businesses . Various income tax systems exist, with varying degrees of tax incidence. Income taxation can be progressive, proportional, or regressive. When the tax is levied on the income of companies, it is often called a corporate...
, the state would have to come up with its own funds for programs. Reagan lost the New Hampshire primary
New Hampshire primary
The New Hampshire primary is the first in a series of nationwide political party primary elections held in the United States every four years , as part of the process of choosing the Democratic and Republican nominees for the presidential elections to be held the subsequent November.Although only a...
to Ford, and the Bell speech was seen as largely to blame for backfiring on Reagan.
U.S. Senate candidate
In 1978, Bell challenged liberal Republican Senator Clifford P. CaseClifford P. Case
Clifford Philip Case was an American lawyer and Republican Party politician who represented in the United States House of Representatives and the State of New Jersey in the United States Senate .-Biography:Clifford P. Case was born in Franklin Park in Somerset County, New Jersey...
in the New Jersey primary. Bell defeated Case on June 6, 1978, the same day Proposition 13 passed in California (the East and West Coast tax revolts), on a platform of income tax rate reduction that foreshadowed the Reagan tax rate cuts of 1981. Bell lost the general election to Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...
Bill Bradley
Bill Bradley
William Warren "Bill" Bradley is an American hall of fame basketball player, Rhodes scholar, and former three-term Democratic U.S. Senator from New Jersey. He ran unsuccessfully for the Democratic Party's nomination for President in the 2000 election.Bradley was born and raised in a suburb of St....
, 55-43 percent. Bell again ran for the Senate in 1982 but was defeated in the Republican primary by liberal Republican U.S. Representative Millicent Fenwick
Millicent Fenwick
Millicent Hammond Fenwick was an American fashion editor, politician and diplomat. A four-term Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from New Jersey, she entered politics late in life and was renowned for her energy and colorful enthusiasm...
. Fenwick was subsequently defeated in November by Democrat Frank Lautenberg
Frank Lautenberg
Frank Raleigh Lautenberg is the senior United States Senator from New Jersey and a member of the Democratic Party. Previously, he was the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Automatic Data Processing, Inc.-Early life, career, and family:...
. (No Republican has been elected to the U.S. Senate in New Jersey since Case's last victory in 1972.)
Television spots
In 1980, Bell produced and co-wrote the television commercials used by the Reagan presidential campaign in New HampshireNew Hampshire
New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. The state was named after the southern English county of Hampshire. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Atlantic Ocean to the east, and the Canadian...
and subsequent primaries. The commercials, which focused on Reagan's policy to fight inflation
Inflation
In economics, inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time.When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation also reflects an erosion in the purchasing power of money – a...
by lowering taxes, were highly effective in boosting Reagan's popularity in the primary polls.
In The Reagan Revolution (Rowland Evans and Robert Novak, 1981), the effectiveness of these commercials is addressed -
It is no exaggeration to say that those Curson-Bell spots...were indispensable to Reagan's solution of his basic political and ideological problems - a solution necessary for him to win the presidency.
Other political work
Bell was elected as a Reagan delegate from New Jersey to the Republican National ConventionRepublican National Convention
The Republican National Convention is the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States. Convened by the Republican National Committee, the stated purpose of the convocation is to nominate an official candidate in an upcoming U.S...
in 1980. As deputy chairman of the pro-Reagan group Citizens for America
Citizens for America
Citizens for America was a United States conservative grass-roots organization founded by President Ronald Reagan's "Kitchen Cabinet" to support President Reagan's national defense and economic initiatives...
, Bell was actively involved in the passage of the Tax Reform Act of 1986
Tax Reform Act of 1986
The U.S. Congress passed the Tax Reform Act of 1986 to simplify the income tax code, broaden the tax base and eliminate many tax shelters and other preferences...
. In addition to his work on the 1980 Reagan campaign, Bell was on the national campaign staff for Richard Nixon in 1968 and Reagan in 1976. In 1988, Bell served as the national campaign coordinator for Kemp for President and in 2000 he worked as senior consultant to Gary Bauer
Gary Bauer
Gary Lee Bauer is an American politician notable for his ties to several evangelical Christian groups and campaigns.-Biography:...
's short-lived presidential campaign.
Consultant and author
Bell is a principal of Capital City Partners, which bills itself as "a multi-skilled national public affairs firm specializing in coalitions development and strategic communications." He has written articles for many publications, most recently The Washington PostThe Washington Post
The Washington Post is Washington, D.C.'s largest newspaper and its oldest still-existing paper, founded in 1877. Located in the capital of the United States, The Post has a particular emphasis on national politics. D.C., Maryland, and Virginia editions are printed for daily circulation...
, The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal
The Wall Street Journal is an American English-language international daily newspaper. It is published in New York City by Dow Jones & Company, a division of News Corporation, along with the Asian and European editions of the Journal....
, and The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard
The Weekly Standard is an American neoconservative opinion magazine published 48 times per year. Its founding publisher, News Corporation, debuted the title September 18, 1995. Currently edited by founder William Kristol and Fred Barnes, the Standard has been described as a "redoubt of...
. He is author of "Populism and Elitism: Politics in the Age of Equality," which Fred Barnes
Fred Barnes (journalist)
Frederic W. Barnes is an American political commentator. He is the executive editor of the news publication The Weekly Standard and regularly appears on the Fox News Channel program Special Report with Bret Baier...
, then with The New Republic
The New Republic
The magazine has also published two articles concerning income inequality, largely criticizing conservative economists for their attempts to deny the existence or negative effect increasing income inequality is having on the United States...
, called “the most important political book” of 1992. Bell lives with his wife and four children in Annandale
Annandale, Virginia
Annandale is a census-designated place in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. The population was 41,008 at the 2010 census, down from 54,994 in 2000 due to the splitting off of the western part of it to form Wakefield and Woodburn CDP's.-Geography:...
, Virginia.
On the death of his friend Jack Kemp in 2009, Bell penned a eulogy
Eulogy
A eulogy is a speech or writing in praise of a person or thing, especially one recently deceased or retired. Eulogies may be given as part of funeral services. However, some denominations either discourage or do not permit eulogies at services to maintain respect for traditions...
crediting Kemp as the father of the economic policies of the Reagan administration, with Reagan as the principal architect of his own foreign policies.
External links
- Biographical information for Jeffrey Bell from The Political GraveyardThe Political GraveyardThe Political Graveyard is a website and database that catalogues information on more than 224,000 American political figures and political families, along with other information.-History:...