Bradley Foundation Awards $1 Million in Prizes

Pizzazz is not something one expects from conservative intellectuals – or from awards ceremonies honoring them. But the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation bestowed its annual prizes with a healthy dose of razzle-dazzle on Wednesday night at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C.Between musical numbers and video tributes, the Bradley Prizes – cash gifts of $250,000 – were given to individuals whose work is in keeping with the foundation’s mission, which includes the “promotion of liberal democracy, democratic capitalism, and a vigorous defense of American institutions,” according to the organization’s president Michael W. Grebe.The 2005 honorees, selected by an eight-member committee, are: a scholar at the Manhattan Institute, Heather MacDonald; columnist George Will; activist Ward Connerly, and a professor at Princeton University, Robert George.This is the second year the awards have been given, and though some have dubbed them the “conservative Nobels,” the ceremony itself was a mini-Academy Awards. Each winner received a Steuben statuette in the shape of a lion (a foundation motif).The executive editor of the Weekly Standard, Fred Barnes, was the celebrity master of ceremonies. A jazz ensemble played in the orchestra pit, and the stage was set with drops decorated like American flags. There was even an anonymous glamour girl to hand recipients their trophies and escort them offstage.Unlike the Oscars, each recipient was invited to give a proper speech – none of which were clipped short.The audience heard first from Mr. Connerly, who is best known for leading the campaign for California’s Proposition 209, the legislation that led to the elimination of race-based preferential treatment by the state. He also served on the Board of Regents at the University of California and is now the chairman of the American Civil Rights Institute.“The one characteristic common to all the honorees,” he said in his speech, “is that we would all do what we do even if no one applauded or agreed with us.”Certainly, Mr. Connerly has had to contend with disapproval. “To take the positions he’s taken, in his world, is to be subject to hatred that most people could not withstand,” the books editor of the Wall Street Journal, Erich Eichmann, observed at the event.Next up was Mr. George, who founded the James Madison Program in American Ideals and Institutions at Princeton. He recounted a touching story about two Italian immigrants (his grandparents) in his hometown of Morgantown, W.Va. He dedicated his award to his father and father-in-law, whose military service, along with their fellow soldiers, “is what has secured the freedom that all of us enjoy.“The defense of America requires sustained and vigorous defense of American values,” he added.Several current and former students of Mr. George attended the presentation – but more wished to. “They had organized a whole busload, but the tickets were limited,” he said after the ceremony. Mr. George said he was astonished by the award. “It came as a bolt out of the blue,” said the professor, who has no plans yet for the $250,000.Ms. MacDonald, too, was undecided about what to do with the cash. “I’ve put it out of my mind,” she said. Though, she mused, “I’d like to have someone do a Haydn opera.”In addition to her role at the Manhattan Institute, Ms. MacDonald is a contributing editor at City Journal. She has written with an unflinching pen on topics from homeland security to racial profiling to education.She opened her speech with a knock at the “The Gates” art installation in Central Park,saying that the fabric looked as if it had been swiped from a construction site. She expressed humility at being in the company of the other winners.Her modesty was balanced by Mr. Will, who said of her, “Heather is a reproach to the rest of us journalists.”Mr. Will is perhaps the most widely known of the recipients. During a video tribute shown before his speech, he was described as a “public intellectual.”Indeed, his Washington Post column has been syndicated since 1974, and for his columns, he won the Pulitzer Price in 1977. Since 1981, he has been part of the ABC news program “This Week.”“For years, George Will has been one of the foremost conservative writers,” Mr. Grebe said.In his speech, Mr. Will praised the Bradley Foundation’s emphasis on American values and noted the public’s “hunger to be connected to the Founders.” He also gave the most succinct and boldest thank-you of the evening: “It’s very fine to win the Pulitzer Prize. It’s even better to receive the Bradley Prize.”The ceremony ended with a performance of “America The Beautiful” sung by a former NYPD police officer, Daniel Rodriguez, and Jennifer Holliday.Ambassador Jeanne J. Kirkpatrick and columnist Charles Krauthammer, both of whom served on the selection committee for the prizes, were present, but kept mum about how they chose. “It’s a bit like picking a pope. We send up white smoke when we’re done,” said Mr. Krauthammer, who himself was one of last year’s recipients. “It was nice to see this become a tradition.”Mr. Grebe, who chaired the selection committee, was just slightly more forthcoming about the process. The foundation seeks nominations from about 100 opinion leaders. No self-submitted nominations are considered.The Bradley Foundation, based in Milwaukee, Wisc., funds research and experimental programs in areas such as education and welfare. But it also supports organizations such as the American Enterprise Institute, the Heritage Foundation, and the Claremont Institute, all of which had representatives at the party.Also at the reception were Kayne Robinson of the National Rifle Association, Adam Meyerson of The Philanthropy Roundtable, and John C. Goodman of the National Center for Policy Analysis, a Bradley beneficiary. Journalists milling about included Myron Magnet, editor of City Journal, John Miller and Ramesh Ponnuru of National Review, and Stephen F. Hayes of the Weekly Standard.The editor of Frontpage.com, David Horowitz, expressed pleasure at the existence of the Bradley Prizes. “All the prizes are controlled by the left,” he said. Mr. Horowitz recently launched a new Web site called discoverthenetwork.com.The president of the Claremont Institute, Brian Kennedy, simply said, “There is something uniquely American about all this.”

Bradley Foundation Awards $1 Million in Prizes

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