National Economic Council, Inc. was an American conservative political organization, headed for much of its history by

Merwin K. Hart Merwin Kimball Hart (June 25, 1881 – November 30, 1962) was an American lawyer, insurance executive, and politician from New York (state), New York who founded the "National Economic Council" and was "involved in controversial matters througho ...

. The organization was established in 1931 as the New York State Economic Council, with the aims of reducing U.S. government expenditures and taxes. In 1943, it changed its name to the National Economic Council. Positions of the New York State Economic Council and the National Economic Council, Inc., included opposition to U.S. President

Franklin Roosevelt Franklin Delano Roosevelt (; ; January 30, 1882April 12, 1945), often referred to by his initials FDR, was an American politician and attorney who served as the 32nd president of the United States from 1933 until his death in 1945. As the ...

and support for

Francisco Franco Francisco Franco Bahamonde (; 4 December 1892 – 20 November 1975) was a Spanish general who led the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalist forces in overthrowing the Second Spanish Republic during the Spanish Civil War ...

fascist Fascism is a far-right, Authoritarianism, authoritarian, ultranationalism, ultra-nationalist political Political ideology, ideology and Political movement, movement,: "extreme militaristic nationalism, contempt for electoral democracy and pol ...

leadership in

Spain , image_flag = Bandera de España.svg , image_coat = Escudo de España (mazonado).svg , national_motto = ''Plus ultra'' (Latin)(English: "Further Beyond") , national_anthem = (English: "Royal March") , i ...

. Several newsletters of the National Economic Council expressed

antisemitic Antisemitism (also spelled anti-semitism or anti-Semitism) is hostility to, prejudice towards, or discrimination against Jews. A person who holds such positions is called an antisemite. Antisemitism is considered to be a form of racism. Antis ...

views, stating that American

Jews Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...

were "alien-minded" and were undermining American government through "deceit", "trickery", and "intimidation". In 1947, the organization sent letters to many trustees of American universities and colleges that attacked

Keynesian economics Keynesian economics ( ; sometimes Keynesianism, named after British economist John Maynard Keynes) are the various macroeconomic theories and models of how aggregate demand (total spending in the economy) strongly influences economic output an ...

as a form of

Marxism Marxism is a Left-wing politics, left-wing to Far-left politics, far-left method of socioeconomic analysis that uses a Materialism, materialist interpretation of historical development, better known as historical materialism, to understand S ...

and denounced the textbook ''Elements of Economics'', by

Lorie Tarshis Lorie Tarshis (22 March 1911 – 4 October 1993) was a Canadians, Canadian economist who taught mostly at Stanford University. He is credited with writing the first introductory textbook that brought Keynesian thinking into American university cl ...

, for endorsing Keynesianism. Notable writers affiliated with the National Economic Council included

Rose Wilder Lane Rose Wilder Lane (December 5, 1886 – October 30, 1968) was an American journalist, travel writer, novelist, political theorist and daughter of American writer Laura Ingalls Wilder. Along with two other female writers, Ayn Rand and Isabel Pa ...

, daughter of

Laura Ingalls Wilder Laura Elizabeth Ingalls Wilder (February 7, 1867 – February 10, 1957) was an American writer, mostly known for the ''Little House on the Prairie'' series of children's books, published between 1932 and 1943, which were based on her childhood ...

. One of the seminal influencers of the mid-20th Century

Libertarian Libertarianism (from french: libertaire, "libertarian"; from la, libertas, "freedom") is a political philosophy that upholds liberty as a core value. Libertarians seek to maximize autonomy and political freedom, and minimize the state's e ...

political movement, Lane served as an editor and book reviewer from 1945-1952. The organization was included on President Richard Nixon's "enemies list".

Notes

References

*James T. Harris (1951). The political philosophy of the National Economic Council, Inc. Amherst College *Yale Divinity Librar
Guide to the Social Ethics Pamphlet Collection
National Economic Council, Inc. New York, NY. 1943, 1960-1961 Economic policy. International organization. Labor movement. Box 26 Folder 2. Newsletters and pamphlet reflecting conservative outlook of the Council on various issues. Antisemitism in the United States Far-right organizations in the United States

National Economic Council, Inc. National Economic Council, Inc. was an American American conservatism, conservative political organization, headed for much of its history by Merwin K. Hart. The organization was established in 1931 as the New York State Economic Council, with th ...

{{US-org-stub

See also

Notes

References