Ernest W. Lefever
Encyclopedia
Ernest Warren Lefever was an American
political theorist and foreign affairs expert who founded the Ethics and Public Policy Center
in 1976 and was nominated for a State Department
post by President
Ronald Reagan
, but withdrew after his nomination was rejected by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
.
on November 12, 1919. He grew up in a pacifist tradition and was ordained as a minister in the Church of the Brethren
. He attended Elizabethtown College
, graduating in 1942. He attended Yale Divinity School
, where he was awarded a degree in 1945, later receiving a doctoral degree in Christian ethics
from the school, in 1956.
Immediately following World War II
, Lefever worked for three years with prisoners of war from Nazi Germany
being held by the allied forces as a representative of the World's Alliance of YMCAs. While there, a visit to the remains of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
turned him into a self-described "humane realist", with his sight of "scattered rib bones in the red clay" convincing him of the tangibility of evil. He took a bone from the camp which he would show at lectures to explain his transformation. Professionally, Lefever had served as a foreign affairs consultant to Hubert H. Humphrey when he was in the United States Senate
, in a similar role with the National Council of Churches
and as a senior researcher at the Brookings Institution
.
In 1976, Lefever established the Ethics and Public Policy Center
to apply "the Judeo-Christian
moral tradition to critical issues of public policy" by defending "the great Western ethical imperatives -- respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, individual freedom and responsibility, justice, the rule of law
, and limited government
." EPPC was criticized for accepting a $25,000 contribution from Nestlé
while the organization was in the process of developing a report investigating medical care in developing nations which was never published, in an alleged deal to minimize Nestlé's marketing of infant formula
in many of these countries.
in the Department of State. The 1981 nomination was cited by The Washington Post
as an effort to appeal to "ultraconservatives" upset that Secretary of State
Alexander Haig
hadn't appointed conservative "hardliners" to his policy team. Lefever testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the U.S. should not act to "promote human rights in other sovereign states". Critics drew attention to his involvement with the Ethics and Public Policy Center and criticized remarks that contrasted regimes that supported the United States which he deemed "authoritarian
" that should be the targets of "quiet diplomacy" – stating that "[o]ur friends deserve quiet support and public encouragement in their quest for a more humane society" and that we should be "a steadfast ally" without "moral posturing" – while those that opposed the U.S. were deemed "totalitarian
" and could not be the targets of change achieved through diplomatic means.
Opposition to the nomination at Senate hearings came from Jacobo Timerman
, a journalist from Argentina
who had been tortured by that country's military government. Time
magazine described Timerman as "a silent but nonetheless potent presence" at the hearings. Two of his brothers opposed the nomination, with Donald Lefever testifying that his brother was not up to the job, and the allegation made by the brothers that Ernest Lefever had supported William Shockley
's views that "blacks were genetically inferior". Lefever withdrew his name in June 1981 in a letter to President Reagan rejecting what he called "suspicion and character assassination", after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 13–4 to reject his nomination, with five Republican
Senators joining all eight Democrats
in rejecting the nomination. The post was ultimately filled by Elliott Abrams
.
at the time of his death, Lefever died at age 89 on July 29, 2009, due to Lewy body dementia
at a nursing home in New Oxford, Pennsylvania
. He was survived by his wife, the former Margaret Briggs, whom he married in 1951, as well as two sons and four grandchildren.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
political theorist and foreign affairs expert who founded the Ethics and Public Policy Center
Ethics and Public Policy Center
The Ethics and Public Policy Center is a Washington, D.C.-based conservative advocacy group. Formed in 1976 by Ernest W. Lefever, who was its president until 1989, the group describes itself as "dedicated to applying the Judeo-Christian moral tradition to critical issues of public policy."Since...
in 1976 and was nominated for a State Department
United States Department of State
The United States Department of State , is the United States federal executive department responsible for international relations of the United States, equivalent to the foreign ministries of other countries...
post by President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
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....
, but withdrew after his nomination was rejected by the Senate Foreign Relations Committee
United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations
The United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations is a standing committee of the United States Senate. It is charged with leading foreign-policy legislation and debate in the Senate. The Foreign Relations Committee is generally responsible for overseeing and funding foreign aid programs as...
.
Early life and education
Lefever was born in York, PennsylvaniaYork, Pennsylvania
York, known as the White Rose City , is a city located in York County, Pennsylvania, United States which is in the South Central region of the state. The population within the city limits was 43,718 at the 2010 census, which was a 7.0% increase from the 2000 count of 40,862...
on November 12, 1919. He grew up in a pacifist tradition and was ordained as a minister in the Church of the Brethren
Church of the Brethren
The Church of the Brethren is a Christian denomination originating from the Schwarzenau Brethren organized in 1708 by eight persons led by Alexander Mack, in Schwarzenau, Bad Berleburg, Germany. The Brethren movement began as a melding of Radical Pietist and Anabaptist ideas during the...
. He attended Elizabethtown College
Elizabethtown College
Elizabethtown College is a small comprehensive college located in Elizabethtown, Pennsylvania in Lancaster County. The school was founded in 1899 by members of the Church of the Brethren...
, graduating in 1942. He attended Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School
Yale Divinity School is a professional school at Yale University, in New Haven, Connecticut, U.S. preparing students for ordained or lay ministry, or for the academy...
, where he was awarded a degree in 1945, later receiving a doctoral degree in Christian ethics
Christian ethics
The first recorded meeting on the topic of Christian ethics, after Jesus' Sermon on the Mount, Great Commandment, and Great Commission , was the Council of Jerusalem , which is seen by most Christians as agreement that the New Covenant either abrogated or set aside at least some of the Old...
from the school, in 1956.
Immediately following World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Lefever worked for three years with prisoners of war from Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
being held by the allied forces as a representative of the World's Alliance of YMCAs. While there, a visit to the remains of the Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen concentration camp
Bergen-Belsen was a Nazi concentration camp in Lower Saxony in northwestern Germany, southwest of the town of Bergen near Celle...
turned him into a self-described "humane realist", with his sight of "scattered rib bones in the red clay" convincing him of the tangibility of evil. He took a bone from the camp which he would show at lectures to explain his transformation. Professionally, Lefever had served as a foreign affairs consultant to Hubert H. Humphrey when he was in the United States Senate
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
, in a similar role with the National Council of Churches
National Council of Churches
The National Council of the Churches of Christ in the USA is an ecumenical partnership of 37 Christian faith groups in the United States. Its member denominations, churches, conventions, and archdioceses include Mainline Protestant, Orthodox, African American, Evangelical, and historic peace...
and as a senior researcher 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...
.
In 1976, Lefever established the Ethics and Public Policy Center
Ethics and Public Policy Center
The Ethics and Public Policy Center is a Washington, D.C.-based conservative advocacy group. Formed in 1976 by Ernest W. Lefever, who was its president until 1989, the group describes itself as "dedicated to applying the Judeo-Christian moral tradition to critical issues of public policy."Since...
to apply "the Judeo-Christian
Judeo-Christian
Judeo-Christian is a term used in the United States since the 1940s to refer to standards of ethics said to be held in common by Judaism and Christianity, for example the Ten Commandments...
moral tradition to critical issues of public policy" by defending "the great Western ethical imperatives -- respect for the inherent dignity of the human person, individual freedom and responsibility, justice, the rule of law
Rule of law
The rule of law, sometimes called supremacy of law, is a legal maxim that says that governmental decisions should be made by applying known principles or laws with minimal discretion in their application...
, and limited government
Limited government
Limited government is a government which anything more than minimal governmental intervention in personal liberties and the economy is generally disallowed by law, usually in a written constitution. It is written in the United States Constitution in Article 1, Section 8...
." EPPC was criticized for accepting a $25,000 contribution from Nestlé
Nestlé
Nestlé S.A. is the world's largest food and nutrition company. Founded and headquartered in Vevey, Switzerland, Nestlé originated in a 1905 merger of the Anglo-Swiss Milk Company, established in 1867 by brothers George Page and Charles Page, and Farine Lactée Henri Nestlé, founded in 1866 by Henri...
while the organization was in the process of developing a report investigating medical care in developing nations which was never published, in an alleged deal to minimize Nestlé's marketing of infant formula
Infant formula
Infant formula is a manufactured food designed and marketed for feeding to babies and infants under 12 months of age, usually prepared for bottle-feeding or cup-feeding from powder or liquid . The U.S...
in many of these countries.
State Department nomination
President Ronald Reagan nominated Lefever for a post as Assistant Secretary of State for Human Rights and Humanitarian AffairsAssistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor
The Assistant Secretary of State for Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor is the head of the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor within the United States Department of State...
in the Department of State. The 1981 nomination was cited by The Washington Post
The 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...
as an effort to appeal to "ultraconservatives" upset that Secretary of State
United States Secretary of State
The United States Secretary of State is the head of the United States Department of State, concerned with foreign affairs. The Secretary is a member of the Cabinet and the highest-ranking cabinet secretary both in line of succession and order of precedence...
Alexander Haig
Alexander Haig
Alexander Meigs Haig, Jr. was a United States Army general who served as the United States Secretary of State under President Ronald Reagan and White House Chief of Staff under Presidents Richard Nixon and Gerald Ford...
hadn't appointed conservative "hardliners" to his policy team. Lefever testified to the Senate Foreign Relations Committee that the U.S. should not act to "promote human rights in other sovereign states". Critics drew attention to his involvement with the Ethics and Public Policy Center and criticized remarks that contrasted regimes that supported the United States which he deemed "authoritarian
Authoritarianism
Authoritarianism is a form of social organization characterized by submission to authority. It is usually opposed to individualism and democracy...
" that should be the targets of "quiet diplomacy" – stating that "[o]ur friends deserve quiet support and public encouragement in their quest for a more humane society" and that we should be "a steadfast ally" without "moral posturing" – while those that opposed the U.S. were deemed "totalitarian
Totalitarianism
Totalitarianism is a political system where the state recognizes no limits to its authority and strives to regulate every aspect of public and private life wherever feasible...
" and could not be the targets of change achieved through diplomatic means.
Opposition to the nomination at Senate hearings came from Jacobo Timerman
Jacobo Timerman
Jacobo Timerman was an Argentine publisher, journalist, and author who was persecuted and honored for confronting the atrocities of the Argentine military regime's Dirty War...
, a journalist from Argentina
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
who had been tortured by that country's military government. Time
Time (magazine)
Time is an American news magazine. A European edition is published from London. Time Europe covers the Middle East, Africa and, since 2003, Latin America. An Asian edition is based in Hong Kong...
magazine described Timerman as "a silent but nonetheless potent presence" at the hearings. Two of his brothers opposed the nomination, with Donald Lefever testifying that his brother was not up to the job, and the allegation made by the brothers that Ernest Lefever had supported William Shockley
William Shockley
William Bradford Shockley Jr. was an American physicist and inventor. Along with John Bardeen and Walter Houser Brattain, Shockley co-invented the transistor, for which all three were awarded the 1956 Nobel Prize in Physics.Shockley's attempts to commercialize a new transistor design in the 1950s...
's views that "blacks were genetically inferior". Lefever withdrew his name in June 1981 in a letter to President Reagan rejecting what he called "suspicion and character assassination", after the Senate Foreign Relations Committee voted 13–4 to reject his nomination, with five Republican
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...
Senators joining all eight Democrats
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...
in rejecting the nomination. The post was ultimately filled by 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...
.
Personal
A resident of Chevy Chase, MarylandChevy Chase, Maryland
Chevy Chase is the name of both a town and an unincorporated census-designated place in Montgomery County, Maryland. In addition, a number of villages in the same area of Montgomery County include "Chevy Chase" in their names...
at the time of his death, Lefever died at age 89 on July 29, 2009, due to Lewy body dementia
Dementia with Lewy bodies
Dementia with Lewy bodies , also known under a variety of other names including Lewy body dementia, diffuse Lewy body disease, cortical Lewy body disease, and senile dementia of Lewy type, is a type of dementia closely allied to both Alzheimers and Parkinson's Diseases...
at a nursing home in New Oxford, Pennsylvania
New Oxford, Pennsylvania
New Oxford is a borough in Adams County, Pennsylvania, United States. The population was 1,783 at the 2010 census. Within New Oxford there are several large manufacturing plants...
. He was survived by his wife, the former Margaret Briggs, whom he married in 1951, as well as two sons and four grandchildren.