Founded in 2002 by a William Bennett-led group of neoconservatives and hardline nationalists to defend George W. Bush's policies in the "war on terror," Americans for Victory over Terrorism (AVOT) was one of a handful of pressure groups that sprung up in the wake of 9/11 to quell criticism of the Bush administration and promote its interventionist policies. Other like-minded groups have included the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies, founded by former New York Times correspondent Clifford May, and a revived version of the Cold War-era Committee on the Present Danger, inaugurated in 2004 by a handful of neoconservative ideologues and their supporters (including May, James Woolsey, Midge Decter, Norman Podhoretz, and Sen. Joe Lieberman) with the aim of "protecting and expanding democracy by supporting policies aimed at winning the global war against terrorism and the movements and ideologies that drive it."
AVOT seems to have ceased most operations, using its website mainly to republish rightist articles from venues such as the Weekly Standard, the National Review Online, and the Wall Street Journal, and to shill for Bennett's 2002 book Why We Fight: Moral Clarity and the War on Terrorism. Articles on AVOT's home page include pieces whose titles give a clear picture of the group's political leanings, such as "Head in the Sand Liberalism in the War on Terror," "Saddam Hussein's Support for Terror-Regardless of Senate Intel Committee Report," and "Why Israel's War is Our War."
Though it seems barely to be active as of fall 2006, AVOT now describes itself as a "project of the Claremont Institute," a California-based group that says its goal is to " restore the principles of the American Founding to their rightful, preeminent authority in our national life." Claremont lists Bennett as its "Washington Fellow."
Created "to defend America's war on terrorism against those who would weaken the nation's resolve and erode our commitment to end the international menace of terrorism," AVOT advocated Bush's pro-war policies "where [the support was] needed most-college campuses, seminar rooms, editorial pages, and other media outlets."
During its inaugural press conference, AVOT leaders announced that as part of the effort to combat the internal "threat" posed by dissidents of Bush's war on terrorism, they had compiled a list of statements by professors, legislators, and writers that the group deemed objectionable-an effort that mirrored an earlier initiative to monitor war opponents by the American Council of Trustees and Alumni, a group founded by Lynne Cheney, the wife of Vice President Dick Cheney, and Lieberman. Among those listed were Lewis Lapham, the longtime editor of Harper's Magazine, former President Jimmy Carter, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-CA), and novelist John Edgar Wideman.
Frank Gaffney, the head of the hawkish Center for Security Policy and an AVOT founder, said at the press conference: "[We must] pay special attention to friends like Saudi Arabia and Egypt whose ongoing use of media are creating problems for our allies." Any criticism of the administration's conduct of the war, he added, could be "interpreted in such a way as to hurt national resolve . [and] embolden the enemy."
According to journalist Jim Lobe, AVOT was initially "funded primarily by Lawrence Kadish, chairman of the Republican Jewish Coalition and a top donor to the Republican Party. Kadish, a real estate investor in New York and Florida, was cited by Mother Jones magazine as one of the country's top individual donors, having given $532,000 to the GOP."
On its website, AVOT recommends visitors check out other groups including the pro-Israel Middle East Media Research Institute, founded by Hudson Institute senior fellow Meyrav Wurmser.
AVOT's Statement of Principles:
"1. America is confronted with an enemy no less dangerous and no less determined than the twin menaces of fascism and communism we faced in the 20th century. And as we were victorious over them, so we must prevail in this, the first war of the 21st century. AVOT will, as its first task, remind citizens of the paramount importance of this effort.
"2. The radical Islamists who attacked us did so because of our democratic ideals, our belief in, and practice of, liberty and equality. AVOT will take to task those who blame America first and who do not understand-or who are unwilling to defend-our fundamental principles.
"3. America's foreign policy should be guided by those same principles upon which America itself was founded. AVOT will call for a foreign policy that emphasizes democracy and human rights.
"4. In this war, our closest and most trusted allies must be our fellow democracies. AVOT will advocate steadfast support for our friends and oppose policies that place short-term 'allies' above them.
"5. By President Bush's declaration to Congress, America is at war with states that harbor terrorists or sponsor terrorism-in all its guises. AVOT will inform Americans about nations that pose a threat to us or that help those that threaten us.
"6. Because of the threat posed by radical Islamists and others, Americans will have to rethink many of their preconceptions about fighting terrorism. AVOT will defend policies that preserve civil liberties without sacrificing common sense and our common defense.
"7. The best defense is a good offense, and America must have a military capacity that enables us to defend ourselves while rooting out terrorists. AVOT will support an increased budget for the Department of Defense, research and deployment of a missile defense system, and an even more capable military.
"8. Improving our gathering and effective utilization of intelligence is a necessity. AVOT will support responsible efforts by our nation's intelligence and law enforcement agencies to collect and utilize more-and more pertinent-information and to facilitate interagency communication.
"9. A necessary front in this war is the battle for international public opinion. AVOT will support radio, television, and other mass media patterned on Radio Free Europe to show how America has stood up for Muslims and other persecuted peoples throughout the years and to explain the virtues of democracy.
"10. Finally, we must understand our enemies better. AVOT will encourage scholarly research into various aspects of Islamic theology, history, and culture. AVOT will hold such scholarship to a serious and rigorous standard."
