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Institutional
Affiliations
Foundation
for the Defense of Democracies: President (2001-current) (1)
Republican
Jewish Coalition: Member of the Board of Directors (2)
Alliance
for Research on National Security Issues: Deputy Director (3)
Project
for the New American Century Letter on Israel, Arafat, and War on
Terrorism: Signatory (2002) (4)
Project
for the New American Century Letter on War on Terrorism: Signatory
(2001) (4)
Journalism
Experience
Rising
Tide Magazine: Editor (1)
Rocky Mountain
News: Associate Editor (1)
KRMA-TV:
Producer and Moderator (1)
TCI Cable:
Host and Moderator for Race for the Presidency (1)
The New
York Times: Reporter and Foreign Correspondent; Founder and
Chief of West Africa Bureau (1)
The New
York Times Sunday Magazine: Editor (1)
Hearst
Newspapers: Roving Foreign Correspondent (1)
CBS Radio
News: Reporter (1)
PBS:
Reporter for Bill Moyers' Journal (1)
Geo Magazine:
Senior Editor (1)
Newsweek:
Associate Editor for International News (1)
Government
Posts/Panels/Commissions
Republican
National Committee: Director of Communications (1997-2001) (1)
Corporate
Connections/Business Interests
BSMG Worldwide:
Senior Managing Director for Washington, D.C. Office (1)
Education
Sarah
Lawrence College: B.A. (1)
University
of Leningrad: Certificate in Russian language and literature
(1)
Columbia
University: M.A. (School of Public and International Affairs;
M.A. (School of Journalism) (1)
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Highlights
& Quotes
Clifford D. May is president of the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD). Foundation for the Defense of Democracies (FDD) was founded two days after the September 11, 2001 attacks. Although FDD is nominally bipartisan, right-wing Republicans direct the policy institute, which focuses on "terrorism, the ideologies that drive terrorism, and the policies that can most effectively eradicate terrorism."
A veteran journalist, May was a foreign correspondent for the New York Times, a senior editor for Geo, and an associate editor for Newsweek. He has also worked for Rising Tide Magazine, Rocky Mountain News, Hearst Newspapers, PBS, TCI Cable, and CBS Radio News. He remains a regular contributor to the National Review. (1)
FDD is best known through the frequent media interviews and news analysis by Clifford May, who before joining FDD was director of communications (1997-2001) for the Republican National Committee. May's other institutional affiliations include being vice-chair of the Republican Jewish Coalition and a signatory of various statements by the Project for the New American Century. and former deputy director of the Alliance for Research and National Security. (1) (2) (4)
Before joining FDD, May also worked for BSMG, one of the largest and most politically connected public and media relations firms in the world. (1)
May is codirector with Frank Gaffney of the Alliance for Research and National Security, which is a joint project of the Center for Security Policy and FDD. (3) The focus of the research institute is terrorism and counterterrorism in the Middle East, particularly in Israel .
On September 29, 2003, May wrote in his National Review Online column that he known that Valerie Plame worked for the CIA long before right-wing columnist Robert Novak blew her cover. In an apparent attempt to discredit her husband, Amb. Joseph Wilson, who had challenged the administration's claims that Iraq was buying yellowcake from Africa, someone in the administration had shared information about Plame's CIA affiliation with as many as five journalists, including Novak. Writing on the same day that the Washington Post confirmed that the CIA had requested a criminal investigation of the affair, May boasted: "That wasn't news to me. I had been told that-but not by anyone working in the White House. Rather I learned it from someone who formerly worked in the government and he mentioned it in an offhand manner, leading me to infer that it was something that insiders were well aware of."
Reporting on May's inside connection, Jim Lobe noted that May's organization FDD is packed with "insiders" such as Jack Kemp, Jeane Kirkpatrick, Newt Gingrich, James Woolsey, Frank Gaffney, Bill Kristol, and Richard Perle. "It is no surprise that Mr. May is a major war booster and White House defender in his own right, or that he would receive advice and help from the same clique of war hawks who lead the campaign for the Iraq war," wrote Lobe, who suggested that May should be interviewed by the Justice Department attorney directing the probe into this national security. (5) |
