Morton Blackwell
Encyclopedia
Morton C. Blackwell is an American
Republican Party
activist. He is president and founder of the Leadership Institute
(established 1979), a 501(c)3 non-profit educational foundation that teaches political technology.
. He served on the Young Republican National Committee for more than a dozen years. He rose to the position of Young Republican National Federation national vice chairman at large. Off and on for five and half years, 1965–1970, he worked as executive director of the College Republican National Committee under four consecutive College Republican national chairmen. He served on the Louisiana
Republican state central committee for eight years.
Blackwell worked for seven years under direct mail
conservative guru Richard Viguerie
.
Blackwell was first elected to the Arlington County
Republican Committee in 1972. He is a member of the Republican Party of Virginia
's state central committee and was first elected in 1988 as Virginia’s Republican National Committee
man, a post he still holds. In 2004 he was elected to the Executive Committee of the RNC.
’s youngest elected delegate to the 1964 Republican National Convention
in San Francisco
. In the spring of 1966, he worked for the election of Roderick Miller
of Lafayette
as only the third Republican member of the Louisiana legislature since Reconstruction.
He was a national convention alternate delegate for Ronald Reagan
in 1968 and 1976, and a Ronald Reagan delegate
at the 1980 Republican National Convention
. In 1980, he organized and oversaw the national youth effort for Reagan. He served as Special Assistant to the President on President Reagan’s White House
Staff, 1981-1984.
Blackwell is considered something of a specialist in matters relating to the rules of the Republican Party
. He served on rules committees of the state Republican parties in Louisiana and Virginia
. He serves now on the RNC’s Standing Committee on Rules and has attended every meeting of the Republican National Conventions’ Rules Committees since 1972.
On January 24, 2008, following the departure of Fred Thompson from the field of candidates seeking the nomination, Blackwell threw his support behind former Massachusetts
Governor, Mitt Romney
.
, a group of politically active conservatives. Founders included Richard Viguerie
, the Virginia direct-mail specialist, Paul Weyrich
, Howard Phillips of the Constitution Party
, and Phyllis Schlafly
, a St. Louis activist who led the opposition to the proposed Equal Rights Amendment
. Another founder was Tim LaHaye
, author of the Left Behind novels. The council does not make its proceedings public. When he first ran for president, George W. Bush
addressed the Council for National Policy. His remarks from 2000 have never been unveiled.
, when he passed out purple heart
bandages which were perceived by some as denigrating the award. The Kerry campaign attacked the activity as the Republican Party mocking United States Soldiers
. Karl Rove called Blackwell's bandages "inappropriate".
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
activist. He is president and founder of the Leadership Institute
Leadership Institute
The Leadership Institute is a 501 non-profit organization located in Arlington, Virginia that teaches "political technology.".The Institute was founded in 1979 by conservative activist Morton C. Blackwell...
(established 1979), a 501(c)3 non-profit educational foundation that teaches political technology.
Biography
In youth politics, Blackwell was a College Republican state chairman and a Young Republican state chairman in Baton Rouge, LouisianaBaton Rouge, Louisiana
Baton Rouge is the capital of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It is located in East Baton Rouge Parish and is the second-largest city in the state.Baton Rouge is a major industrial, petrochemical, medical, and research center of the American South...
. He served on the Young Republican National Committee for more than a dozen years. He rose to the position of Young Republican National Federation national vice chairman at large. Off and on for five and half years, 1965–1970, he worked as executive director of the College Republican National Committee under four consecutive College Republican national chairmen. He served on the Louisiana
Louisiana
Louisiana is a state located in the southern region of the United States of America. Its capital is Baton Rouge and largest city is New Orleans. Louisiana is the only state in the U.S. with political subdivisions termed parishes, which are local governments equivalent to counties...
Republican state central committee for eight years.
Blackwell worked for seven years under direct mail
Direct mail
Advertising mail, also known as direct mail, junk mail, or admail, is the delivery of advertising material to recipients of postal mail. The delivery of advertising mail forms a large and growing service for many postal services, and direct-mail marketing forms a significant portion of the direct...
conservative guru Richard Viguerie
Richard Viguerie
Richard Art Viguerie is a conservative figure, pioneer of political direct mail and writer on American politics...
.
Blackwell was first elected to the Arlington County
Arlington County, Virginia
Arlington County is a county in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The land that became Arlington was originally donated by Virginia to the United States government to form part of the new federal capital district. On February 27, 1801, the United States Congress organized the area as a subdivision of...
Republican Committee in 1972. He is a member of the Republican Party of Virginia
Republican Party of Virginia
The Republican Party of Virginia is the Virginia chapter of the Republican Party. It is based in the Richard D. Obenshain Center in Richmond in the Commonwealth of Virginia.- Organization and candidate selection :The State Party Plan...
's state central committee and was first elected in 1988 as Virginia’s Republican National Committee
Republican National Committee
The Republican National Committee is an American political committee that provides national leadership for the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican political platform, as well as coordinating fundraising and election strategy. It is...
man, a post he still holds. In 2004 he was elected to the Executive Committee of the RNC.
Political activism
Blackwell was Barry GoldwaterBarry Goldwater
Barry Morris Goldwater was a five-term United States Senator from Arizona and the Republican Party's nominee for President in the 1964 election. An articulate and charismatic figure during the first half of the 1960s, he was known as "Mr...
’s youngest elected delegate to the 1964 Republican National Convention
1964 Republican National Convention
The 1964 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States took place in the Cow Palace, San Francisco, California, on July 13 to July 16, 1964. Before 1964, there had only been one national Republican convention on the West Coast...
in San Francisco
San Francisco, California
San Francisco , officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the financial, cultural, and transportation center of the San Francisco Bay Area, a region of 7.15 million people which includes San Jose and Oakland...
. In the spring of 1966, he worked for the election of Roderick Miller
Roderick Miller
Roderick Luke "Rod" Miller was a Lafayette attorney and a pioneer in the development of the Republican Party in Louisiana. He was the third Republican since Reconstruction to be elected to the Louisiana House of Representatives and the first ever from Lafayette Parish, now one of the stronger...
of Lafayette
Lafayette, Louisiana
Lafayette is a city in and the parish seat of Lafayette Parish, Louisiana, United States, on the Vermilion River. The population was 120,623 at the 2010 census...
as only the third Republican member of the Louisiana legislature since Reconstruction.
He was a national convention alternate delegate for 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....
in 1968 and 1976, and a Ronald Reagan delegate
Delegate
A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization at a meeting or conference between organizations of the same level A delegate is a person who speaks or acts on behalf of an organization (e.g., a government, a charity, an NGO, or a trade union) at a meeting or conference...
at the 1980 Republican National Convention
1980 Republican National Convention
The 1980 National Convention of the Republican Party of the United States convened at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan, from July 14 to July 17, 1980. The 32nd Republican National Convention nominated former Governor Ronald W. Reagan of California for President of the United States and former...
. In 1980, he organized and oversaw the national youth effort for Reagan. He served as Special Assistant to the President on President Reagan’s White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
Staff, 1981-1984.
Blackwell is considered something of a specialist in matters relating to the rules of the Republican Party
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...
. He served on rules committees of the state Republican parties in Louisiana and Virginia
Republican Party of Virginia
The Republican Party of Virginia is the Virginia chapter of the Republican Party. It is based in the Richard D. Obenshain Center in Richmond in the Commonwealth of Virginia.- Organization and candidate selection :The State Party Plan...
. He serves now on the RNC’s Standing Committee on Rules and has attended every meeting of the Republican National Conventions’ Rules Committees since 1972.
On January 24, 2008, following the departure of Fred Thompson from the field of candidates seeking the nomination, Blackwell threw his support behind former Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
Governor, Mitt Romney
Mitt Romney
Willard Mitt Romney is an American businessman and politician. He was the 70th Governor of Massachusetts from 2003 to 2007 and is a candidate for the 2012 Republican Party presidential nomination.The son of George W...
.
Council for National Policy
Blackwell has been a member since 1984 of the Council for National PolicyCouncil for National Policy
The Council for National Policy , is an umbrella organization and networking group for social conservative activists in the United States...
, a group of politically active conservatives. Founders included Richard Viguerie
Richard Viguerie
Richard Art Viguerie is a conservative figure, pioneer of political direct mail and writer on American politics...
, the Virginia direct-mail specialist, Paul Weyrich
Paul Weyrich
Paul M. Weyrich was an American conservativepolitical activist and commentator, most notable as a figurehead of the New Right. He co-founded the Heritage Foundation, a conservative think tank and the Free Congress Foundation, another conservative think tank...
, Howard Phillips of the Constitution Party
Constitution Party (United States)
The Constitution Party is a paleoconservative political party in the United States. It was founded as the U.S. Taxpayers' Party by Howard Philips in 1991. Phillips was the party's candidate in the 1992, 1996 and 2000 presidential elections...
, and Phyllis Schlafly
Phyllis Schlafly
Phyllis McAlpin Stewart Schlafly is a Constitutional lawyer and an American politically conservative activist and author who founded the Eagle Forum. She is known for her opposition to modern feminism ideas and for her campaign against the proposed Equal Rights Amendment...
, a St. Louis activist who led the opposition to the proposed Equal Rights Amendment
Equal Rights Amendment
The Equal Rights Amendment was a proposed amendment to the United States Constitution. The ERA was originally written by Alice Paul and, in 1923, it was introduced in the Congress for the first time...
. Another founder was Tim LaHaye
Tim LaHaye
Timothy F. LaHaye is an American evangelical Christian minister, author, and speaker. He is best known for the Left Behind series of apocalyptic fiction, which he co-wrote with Jerry B. Jenkins. He has written over 50 books, both fiction and non-fiction.-Early life:LaHaye was born in Detroit,...
, author of the Left Behind novels. The council does not make its proceedings public. When he first ran for president, George W. 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....
addressed the Council for National Policy. His remarks from 2000 have never been unveiled.
Affiliations
- The Mont Pelerin SocietyMont Pelerin SocietyThe Mont Pelerin Society is an international organization composed of economists , philosophers, historians, intellectuals, business leaders, and others who favour classical liberalism...
- The Council for National Policy
- Executive Director of The Council for National Policy, 1991–2000
- White House Staff as Special Assistant to President Reagan for Public Liaison, 1981–1984
- Former Staff Member, Senate Republican Policy Committee
- Former Staff Member, U.S. Senator Gordon Humphrey
- Founder (1979) and President, The Leadership Institute
- Founder and Chairman, Conservative Leadership PAC
- Board member, Reagan Alumni Association
- Former Editor, The New Right Report
- Board member, American Conservative UnionAmerican Conservative UnionThe American Conservative Union is an American political organization advocating conservative policies, and is the oldest such conservative lobbying organization in the country.-Organization:...
- Board member, Free Congress FoundationFree Congress FoundationThe Free Congress Foundation , is a conservative think tank founded by Paul Weyrich. It was based near Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C...
- Director, Free Congress FoundationFree Congress FoundationThe Free Congress Foundation , is a conservative think tank founded by Paul Weyrich. It was based near Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C...
- Chairman, Legislative Studies Institute
- Director, National Right to Work Committee
- Trustee, The Philadelphia Society
Controversy
Blackwell was at the center of controversy during the 2004 Republican National Convention2004 Republican National Convention
The 2004 Republican National Convention, the presidential nominating convention of the Republican Party of the United States, took place from August 30 to September 2, 2004 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York...
, when he passed out purple heart
Purple Heart
The Purple Heart is a United States military decoration awarded in the name of the President to those who have been wounded or killed while serving on or after April 5, 1917 with the U.S. military. The National Purple Heart Hall of Honor is located in New Windsor, New York...
bandages which were perceived by some as denigrating the award. The Kerry campaign attacked the activity as the Republican Party mocking United States Soldiers
United States Army
The United States Army is the main branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for land-based military operations. It is the largest and oldest established branch of the U.S. military, and is one of seven U.S. uniformed services...
. Karl Rove called Blackwell's bandages "inappropriate".
Sources
- Byron York, The Vast Left Wing Conspiracy (New York, Crown Forum, 2005), pp. 233–234