Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI)
Background
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) was founded in 1984 and describes itself as โa non-profit public policy organization dedicated to advancing the principles of limited government, free enterprise, and individual liberty.โ1โAbout,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/IpJWA
CEI pursues what it calls a โfull-service approach to advancing public policy.โ That includes media advocacy campaigns intended to โreach policy makers, influential opinion leaders, and grassroots activists.โ Part of their approach is to โbuild coalitions, joining with allies to advance specific issues at the state, national, and international levels.โ
Oil giant ExxonMobil has been one of CEI‘s top funders, contributing at least $2.1 million since 19972ExxonSecrets Factsheet: Competitive Enterprise Institute, CEI. Data retrieved August, 2016. Most recent data on file at DeSmog. before reportedly3“ExxonMobil cuts off funding to (some) climate deniers,” The Christian Science Monitor, May 29, 2008. Archived July 8, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/yVKMW cutting off funding in 2006. Donors Trust (DT) has donated over $4 million to CEI as of 2013. DT has been described as the โdark money ATM of the conservative movementโ4Andy Kroll. โExposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement,โ Mother Jones, February 5, 2003. Archived July 24, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dP34U for its ability to take in funds from anonymous donors and distribute them to recipient organizations.5Richard Littlemore. “Exxon Acknowledges Climate Change, cuts CEI’s funding,” DeSmog, January 11, 2007.
CEI Center for Energy and Environment
Myron Ebell, chairman of the Cooler Heads Coalition and an outspoken man-made climate change denier, serves as Director of the CEI‘s Center for Energy and Environment.6โMyron Ebell: Director, Center for Energy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived December 29, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/mxjzo In March 2010, the Financial Times called Ebell โone of America’s most prominent climate-change skeptics.โ7โMyron Ebell: Director, Center for Energy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived September 29, 2012. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/wpXxG
According to the CEI‘s website, โCEI‘s largest program takes on all the hard energy and climate issues. CEI questions global warming alarmism, makes the case for access to affordable energy, and opposes energy-rationing policies, including the Kyoto Protocol, cap-and-trade legislation, and EPA regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. CEI also opposes all government mandates and subsidies for conventional and alternative energy technologies.โ8โEnergy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived June 23, 2016. https://archive.ph/f5Dm8
GlobalWarming.org (Cooler Heads Coalition)
The Cooler Heads Coalition, also known as GlobalWarming.org, is formerly a sub-group of the National Consumer Coalition, but now run as an โinformal and ad-hoc group focused on dispelling the myths of global warming by exposing flawed economic, scientific, and risk analysis.โ
GlobalWarming.org states, โThis website is paid for and maintained by the Competitive Enterprise Institute.โ9โAbout,โ GlobalWarming.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/nLWnM
For many years, the home page of CEIโs website (along with all other pages) provided a link to the Cooler Heads Coalition via the text โGlobalWarming.orgโ in the footer which sent users directly to the Cooler Heads Coalition home page.
For example, in 2018, see an example of the CEI’s homepage via the Internet Archive.10Homepage, Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/qdrnO A link in the footer goes to GlobalWarming.org.11Homepage, Global Warming.org. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/O44nJ

This link was still active on the CEI homepage in May 2019. 12Homepage, Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived May 28, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DrxZn It continued to be active as late as May 2020.13Homepage, Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived May 31, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/oF2yW
SafeChemicalPolicy.org
SafeChemicalPolicy.org is a website that lobbies against regulations of the chemical industry, and promotes โthe life-enhancing value of chemicals.โ
According to their website, โwe don’t need to fear modern chemical technologies. In fact, we should fear the campaigns to ban, regulate, or otherwise deprive customers of the benefits associated with [chemical technologies].โ14โAbout,โ SAFEChemicalPolicy.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Lsqzn
Stance on Climate Change
2025
The CEI website’s Energy and Environment page, as of February 2025, read as follows:15“Energy and Environment,” CEI. Archived February 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/SzReH
“The Competitive Enterprise Institute advocates for free market reforms that ensure abundant and affordable energy and better protect our environment. CEI has been instrumental in fighting decades of climate alarmism and anti-energy policies that constrict energy supplies, raise prices, and stoke unjustified pessimism about human adaptive capabilities.
“Conclusions of CEIโs research and analysis include: Abundant, affordable energy is a blessing underpinning the unprecedented improvements of the past two centuries in life expectancy, health, standards of living, food and nutrition, and industrial production. The climate catastrophe narrative is based on global climate models that inflate greenhouse gas emission scenarios and have been falsified by the past four decades of temperature data. The real costs of proposed solutions to the alleged crisis hugely exceed their hypothetical benefits.
“Coalitions led by CEI were instrumental in defeating ratification of the 1997 Kyoto Protocol, defeating enactment of the 2009 Waxman-Markey cap-and-trade bill, and convincing President Trump to withdraw from the 2015 Paris climate treaty.”
2016
โCEI questions global warming alarmism, makes the case for access to affordable energy, and opposes energy-rationing policies, including the Kyoto Protocol, cap-and-trade legislation, and EPA regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. CEI also opposes all government mandates and subsidies for conventional and alternative energy technologies.โ16โEnergy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived June 23, 2016. https://archive.ph/f5Dm8
2008
โAlthough global warming has been described as the greatest threat facing mankind, the policies designed to address global warming actually pose a greater threat. The Kyoto Protocol and similar domestic schemes to ration carbon-based energy use would do little to slow carbon dioxide emissions, but would have enormous costs.โ17โGlobal Warming,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived February 11, 2008. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/F1GQQ
2006
โThe fuels that produce CO2 have freed us from a world of backbreaking labor, lighting up our lives, allowing us to create and move the things we need; the people we love. [Ominous Music] Now, some politicians want to label carbon dioxide a pollutant. Imagine if they succeed. What would our lives be like then? Carbon dioxide: they call it pollution. We call it life.โ18โGlobal Warming – ‘Energy’,โ (YouTube video), Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2006. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
Funding
Fossil Fuel Funding & CEI
Murray Energy Funding
Murray Energy bankruptcy filings in 2019 revealed the Competitive Enterprise Institute received $200,000 from the energy company owned by climate change denier Robert Murray. The filings revealed a wide range of creditors with deep ties to climate change denial including the Heartland Institute, International Climate Science Coalition, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, and Government Accountability & Oversight. Robert Murray was known for being a major Trump donor, and giving officials a wish list of proposed actions to help the coal industry. See related reporting from The Intercept,19Lee Fang. โCOAL GIANT PROVIDED SECRET FINANCING TO GROUP CHALLENGING CLIMATE LAWSUITS,โThe Intercept, December 17, 2019. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/hUjRt E&E News,20Scott Waldman. โMurray Energy a major funder of climate denial groups,โ E&E News, December 17, 2019. Archived December 20, 2019. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/wip/WrDuT and The New York Times.21Lisa Friedman. โA Coal Baron Funded Climate Denial as His Company Spiraled Into Bankruptcy,โ The New York Times, December 17, 2019. Archived December 20, 2019. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/ujTS6
Other groups funded by Murray Energy include FreedomWorks, the Cato Institute, the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow, and Judicial Watch. As The New York Times noted, Murray continued to fund climate change denial even as his company was going bankrupt.
2019 Gala
The New York Times obtained22Tik Root, Lisa Friedman, and Hiroko Tabuchi. โFollowing the Money That Undermines Climate Science,โ The New York Times, July 10, 2019. Archived July 10, 2019. Archive.fo URL:https://archive.fo/8G1po a program for a recent gala organized by the Competitive Enterprise Institute that included a list of corporate donors and sponsors and offered โoffered a rare glimpse into the money that makes the work of these think tanks [questioning established climate science] possible.โ23โCEI 35th Anniversary Dinner and Receiptionโ (PDF), CEI, July 8, 2019 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
โAmong the sponsors for the Game of Thrones-themed gala were groups that have long been aligned with fossil fuel interests, including the Charles Koch Institute and the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers. The fuel and petrochemical group, which lobbies for gasoline producers, pushed to weaken car fuel economy standards, one of the Obama administrationโs landmark climate policies,โ The New York Times reported.24Tik Root, Lisa Friedman, and Hiroko Tabuchi. โFollowing the Money That Undermines Climate Science,โ The New York Times, July 10, 2019. Archived July 10, 2019. Archive.fo URL:https://archive.fo/8G1po
The program included support from major corporations like Google and Amazon that, despite having made commitments to address climate change in their official public relations strategies, still support CEI. A Google representative said their support of the gala did not necessarily mean it supports climate denial. โWeโve been extremely clear that Googleโs sponsorship doesnโt mean that we endorse that organizationโs entire agenda,โ said a spokesman. A spokeswoman for Amazon, said the company โmay not agree with all of the positions of each organization,โ but believed that its $15,000 contribution to the event โwill help advance policy objectives aligned with our interests.โ Sponsors listed below:25โCEI 35th Anniversary Dinner and Receiptionโ (PDF), CEI, July 8, 2019 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
Reception Sponsors
- Anonymous
- Honorable C. Boyden Gray
- J.P. Humphreys Foundation
- Marathon Petroleum
- Stephen Modzelewski
Platinum Sponsors
- American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers
- Credit Union National Association
- DCI Group
- The Heritage Foundation
- PHRMA
- Ike Calvin Sugg
- T-Mobile
Gold Sponsors
- Amazon
- American Beverage Association
- Atlas Strategy Group
- Consumer Technology Association
- Distilled Spirits Council
- Jean-Claude Gruffat
- Juul
- NCTA – The Internet & Television Association
- The Policy Circle
- Syngenta
- Verizon
- Dick and Mary Beth Weiss
Silver Sponsors
- Altria
- Baker Hostetler
- Beach Foundation
- Bracewell LLP
- Charles Koch Institute
- Motion Picture Association of America
- Philip Morris International
- Uber
- White House Writers Group
Bronze Sponsors
- Airports Council International
- FISGA
- David and Karen Parker
- Porterfield, Fettig & Sears
- Wiley Rein LLP
Copper Sponsors
- Americans for Prosperity Foundation
- Association of American Railroads
- Atlas Society
- AT&T
- BNSF Railway
- CSX Corporation
- DonorsTrust
- FICO
- National Automobile Dealers Association
- Norfolk Southern
- O’Melveny & Myers (Spelled O’Melveney in program)
- Union Pacific Corporation
โSpecial Thank Youโ
- Chris Crandall
- Dana Crandall
- Vinnie Manocha of S&R Liquors
- David Ozgo and Distilled Spirits Council
2013 Annual Dinner
While the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) doesn’t reveal the sources behind its $7 million annual budget, the Washington Post was able to glimpse a snapshot of CEI‘s funding in a list of donors to CEI‘s annual dinner, which included energy companies Marathon Petroleum, Koch Industries, American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity, and American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers (AFPM).26Juliet Eilperin. โAnatomy of a Washington dinner: Who funds the Competitive Enterprise Institute?โ The Washington Post, June 20, 2013. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CZoH2
The following is from an interchange between Myron Ebell and the Environmental Defense Fund’s Jeremy Symons, discussing CEI‘s funding from the coal company Murray Energy (see video below):27โCompetitive Enterprise Institute’s Myron Ebell: ‘I’d Like To See A Lot More Funding’ From Big Coal,โ Media Matters, August 5, 2015. Archived November 10, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/NrMh4
SYMONS: Isnโt Murray Energy your biggest funder of your dinner? Theyโre the biggest coal company in the United States for underground mining.
EBELL: Iโd like to see a lot more funding from all of those companies, but unfortunately many of the coal companies are now going bankrupt.
SYMONS: Wait, You said you donโt represent the companies but you want more money from the companies?
EBELL: I would like to have more funding so that I can combat the nonsense put out by the environmental movement.
Funding Breakdown
The following is sources from data from the Conservative Transparency project and publicly available 990 tax forms.28โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ Conservative Transparency. Data retrieved June 2, 2017.
View attached spreadsheet for additional information on the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s funding by year (.xlsx). Note that not all individual funding values have been verified by DeSmog.
Donor | Total |
DonorsTrust | $8,523,650 |
Dunn’s Foundation for the Advancement of Right Thinking | $6,067,000 |
Sarah Scaife Foundation | $5,440,000 |
Searle Freedom Trust | $3,310,000 |
The Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation | $2,005,040 |
Exxon Mobil | $1,775,000 |
Donors Capital Fund | $1,332,279 |
Claws Foundation | $565,000 |
Claude R. Lambe Charitable Foundation | $364,820 |
The Randolph Foundation | $359,885 |
Schwab Charitable Fund | $353,500 |
Scaife Family Foundation | $350,000 |
Castle Rock Foundation | $345,000 |
Barbara and Barre Seid Foundation | $343,190 |
Charles G. Koch Charitable Foundation | $326,419 |
David H. Koch Charitable Foundation | $315,000 |
Earhart Foundation | $300,000 |
Chase Foundation of Virginia | $255,960 |
John M. Olin Foundation | $230,300 |
Robert W. Wilson Charitable Trust | $210,000 |
David H. Koch (Direct) | $200,000 |
Armstrong Foundation | $182,500 |
National Philanthropic Trust | $180,000 |
Diana Davis Spencer Foundation | $168,000 |
Robert P. Rotella Foundation | $157,800 |
Bradley Impact Fund | $154,000 |
William H. Donner Foundation | $153,708 |
American Future Fund | $150,000 |
The Shelby Cullom Davis Foundation | $100,000 |
The Rodney Fund | $100,000 |
PhRMA | $85,000 |
Kulakala Point Foundation | $83,500 |
JM Foundation | $80,000 |
Adolph Coors Foundation | $70,000 |
The Roe Foundation | $70,000 |
Holman Foundation | $65,062 |
John William Pope Foundation | $65,000 |
The Carthage Foundation | $60,000 |
Philip M. McKenna Foundation | $50,000 |
Jaquelin Hume Foundation | $50,000 |
The Vernon K. Krieble Foundation | $49,500 |
Aequus Institute | $47,624 |
Ravenel and Elizabeth Curry Foundation | $45,000 |
E L Craig Foundation | $40,000 |
The Challenge Foundation | $40,000 |
Charles Koch Institute | $37,020 |
Woodhouse Family Foundation | $36,000 |
Edgar and Elsa Prince Foundation | $35,000 |
The Whitcomb Charitable Foundation | $30,500 |
Pierre F. and Enid Goodrich Foundation | $30,000 |
Crossroads GPS | $25,000 |
American Petroleum Institute | $25,000 |
Same Line Foundation | $22,000 |
National Christian Charitable Foundation | $20,400 |
Lowndes Foundation | $15,000 |
Koch Companies Public Sector | $15,000 |
The Robertson-Finley Foundation | $15,000 |
Smith Richardson Foundation | $15,000 |
Wodecroft Foundation | $11,000 |
John P & Kathryn G Evans Foundation | $10,000 |
Deramus Foundation | $10,000 |
Herrick Foundation | $10,000 |
The Gordon and Mary Cain Foundation | $5,000 |
True Foundation | $2,800 |
The TWS Foundation | $2,500 |
Eric Javits Family Foundation | $2,000 |
Abstraction Fund | $2,000 |
Lynn & Foster Friess Family Foundation | $1,250 |
Dick and Betsy DeVos Family Foundation | $1,000 |
Ed Uihlein Family Foundation | $1,000 |
Leadership Institute | $500 |
Grand Total | $35,598,707 |
* In 2007 ExxonMobil reported that they would no longer be funding CEI.29Richard Littlemore. โExxon Acknowledges Climate Change, cuts CEI’s funding,โ DeSmog, January 11, 2007. 30โSceptics forced to contain hot air on gases,โ The Australian, April 10, 2007. Archived September 2, 2013.
CEI Annual Dinner Sponsors
While CEI doesn’t disclose its donors, it has revealed the companies that sponsor its annual dinner in the past. In 2006, a Washington Post article noted that sponsors of CEI‘s most recent annual dinner included:31Joel Achenbach. โThe Tempest,โ The Washington Post, May 28, 2006. Archived February 20, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/9bwde
- The Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers
- Exxon Mobil
- Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (PHRMA)
- Pfizer
- General Motors
- American Petroleum Institute
- The American Plastics Council
- The Chlorine Chemistry Council
- Arch Coal
In 2013, The Washington Post reported the list included $110,000 from donors in the energy industry, as well as significant donations by groups related to Charles and David Koch. Donors listed for that year included the following:32Juliet Eilperin. โAnatomy of a Washington dinner: Who funds the Competitive Enterprise Institute?โ The Washington Post, June 20, 2013. Archived February 20, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/O2ssB
- Murray Energy Corporation โ $45,000
- Marathon Petroleum โ $25,000
- Devon Energy โ $15,000
- Phillips 66 โ $10,000
- American Coalition for Clean Coal Electricity โ $5,000
- American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers โ $5,000
- Emerson Electric โ $5,000
- Association of American Railroads โ $5,000
- BNSF Railway โ $5,000
- Canadian National Railway โ $5,000
- CSX Corporation โ $5,000
- Norfolk Southern โ $5,000
- Alliance of Automobile Manufacturers, Inc. โ $15,000
- Ford Motor Company โ $5,000
- Volkswagen Group of America โ $5,000
- Altria Corporate Services โ $10,000
- American Beverage Association โ $5,000
- Distilled Spirits Council of the United States โ $5,000
- Pepsico, Inc. โ $5,000
- JP Humphreys Foundation โ $40,000
- Claws Foundation โ $25,000
- Koch Companies Public Sector โ $15,000
- Charles Koch Foundation โ $10,000
- Dunnโs Foundation โ $10,000
- Americans for Prosperity โ $5,000
- The Beach Foundation โ $5,000
- Comcast-NBC Universal โ $10,000
- National Cable & Telecommunications Association โ $10,000
- News Corporation โ $10,000
- Verizon Communications โ $7,500
- The American Conservative โ $5,000
- Motion Picture Association of America โ $5,000
- White House Writers Group โ $5,000
- Google โ $50,000
- Facebook โ $25,000
- Consumer Electronics Association โ $10,000
- GTECH โ $5,000
- Microsoft Corporation โ $5,000
- PhRMA โ $25,000
- Glaxo-SmithKline โ $15,000
- American Optometric Association โ $10,000
- Generic Pharmaceutical Association โ $10,000
- Biotechnology Industry Organization โ $10,000
- Monsanto โ $10,000
- Syngenta โ $10,000
- FMC Corporation โ $5,000
- U.S. Chamber of Commerce โ $5,000
- Miller & Long D.C., Inc. โ $5,000
- Old Boston Restorations โ $5,000
- MasterCard โ $25,000
- Cash America โ $10,000
- Credit Union National Association โ $25,000
- National Association of Credit Service Organizations โ $7,500
- American Bankers Association โ $5,000
- Bracewell & Giuliani โ $7,500
- Baker & Hostetler LLP โ $7,500
- DCI Group โ $5,000
- Dezenhall Resources โ $5,000
- Wiley Rein LLP โ $5,000
Individual donations included:
- Ambassador C. Boyden Gray โ $25,000
- Stanford Rothschild โ $25,000
- Stephen Modzelewski โ $25,000
- Fred Young โ $15,000
- Jean Claude Gruffat โ $10,000
- Robert Luddy โ $10,000
- Jack France โ $7,500
- Lester Weindling โ $5,000
- Arcadio Casillas โ $5,000
- James Curley โ $5,000
- Forrest G. Hoglund โ $5,000
- Angelo Puglisi โ $5,000
Exxon Funding
According to the most recent available from Greenpeace’s ExxonSecrets project, the Competitive Enterprise Institute has received at least $2,100,000 from ExxonMobil since 1997.33ExxonSecrets Factsheet: Competitive Enterprise Institute, CEI. Data retrieved August, 2016. Most recent data on file at DeSmog.
Koch Funding
According to data from Greenpeace, the Competitive Enterprise Institute has received a grand total of at least $644,743 from Koch-related foundations between 1997 and 2015.34โCompetitive Enterprise Institute (CEI): Koch Industries Climate Denial Front Group,โ Greenpeace USA. Archived March 14, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/3STLm
*Original tax forms prior to 1997 are no longer available for verification. If you include these values, the grand total jumps to $839,743 in Koch funding from 1986 to 2015.35โCompetitive Enterprise Institute (CEI): Koch Industries Climate Denial Front Group,โ Greenpeace USA. Archived March 14, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/3STLm
Year | Charles Koch Foundation | Charles Koch Institute | Claude R. Lambe Charitable Foundation | David H. Koch Charitable Foundation | Grand Total |
*1986 | $10,000 | $10,000 | |||
*1987 | $10,000 | $10,000 | |||
*1988 | $5,000 | $10,000 | $15,000 | ||
*1989 | $10,000 | $10,000 | |||
*1991 | $10,000 | $10,000 | |||
*1992 | $10,000 | $10,000 | |||
*1993 | $35,000 | $35,000 | |||
*1995 | $25,000 | $25,000 | |||
*1996 | $20,000 | $50,000 | $70,000 | ||
1997 | $40,000 | $50,000 | $90,000 | ||
1998 | $95,000 | $95,000 | |||
1999 | $50,000 | $50,000 | |||
2000 | $25,000 | $100,000 | $125,000 | ||
2002 | $29,460 | $29,460 | |||
2003 | $27,320 | $27,320 | |||
2004 | $54,640 | $54,640 | |||
2009 | $24,079 | $10,000 | $34,079 | ||
2010 | $9,200 | $9,200 | |||
2011 | $9,200 | $9,200 | |||
2012 | $16,700 | $16,700 | |||
2013 | $10,000 | $10,000 | |||
2014 | $53,924 | $5,200 | $59,124 | ||
2015 | $29,200 | $5,820 | $35,020 | ||
Grand Total | $148,903 | $11,020 | $364,820 | $315,000 | $839,743 |
Tobacco Industry Funding
In a October, 2000 memo, Fred L. Smith thanked Ms. Maura Payne of RJ Reynolds Tobacco for โRJR‘s continued supportโ and adds โyour personal involvement has meant a lot to our battles over the last 16 years.โ The letter concludes, โI know you have contributed between $20,000 to $50,000 over the years.โ36โDear Maura,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, October 16, 2000. Retrieved from Tobacco Industry Documents. Bates Number : 525291068-525291069.
In an October, 1994 memo, Smith thanked Philip Morris for a contribution of $150,000. โPhilip Morris’s contribution will enable CEI to expand our efforts in well-established areas as our Human Cost of Regulation program and other regulatory reform projects,โ the memo read.37โDear Tom,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, October 11, 1994. Retrieved from Truth Tobacco Industry Documents. Bates No. 2046558061.
Other Funders
According to the Capital Research Center, other corporations who have funded CEI include Cigna, Chevron, Texaco, Ford Motor Company, Chrysler Corporation, and numerous others.38โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ Capital Research Center. Archived July 2, 2003. https://archive.ph/KDxLB
A CEI report sent to Philip Morris also lists a number of other companies and foundations who had given CEI $10,000 or more:39COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INST,SMITH,FL JR. COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE. 1994 March. Philip Morris. Retrieved from UCSF Industry Documents Library. Bates No. 2046558088-2046558099.
- Aequus Institute
- Amoco Foundation, Inc.
- Coca-Cola Company
- E.L. Craig Foundation
- CSX Corporation
- Fieldstead and Co.
- FMC Foundation
- Ford Motor Company Fund
- Curtis and Edith Munson Foundation
- Philip Morris Companies, Inc.
- Pfizer Inc.
- Precision Valve Corporation
- Prince Foundation
- Sheldon Rose
- Texaco, Inc.
- Texaco Foundation
- Alex C. Walker Foundation
990 Forms
Key People
View key people by year below, or view the attached spreadsheet for a full list of the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s key People (.xlsx) including sources.
President
The Competitive Enterprise Instituteโs current president and CEO40“A Thorn With a Smile” (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, April 25, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. is Kent Lassman.41“Kent Lassman,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/s1D1Z Lassman joined CEI from the lobbying firm DCI where he had been a vice president.42“Kent Lassman,” DCI Group. Archived November 3, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/yODK4 A 2016 interview with Lassman stated that during his eight year tenure at DCI, Lassman helped business owners avoid legal challenges.43Connor D. Wolf. “CEIโs Kent Lassman: Meeting Policy With People,” InsideSources. August 9, 2017. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/kH7px
Prior to DCI, Lassman worked for FreedomWorks, Citizens for a Sound Economy,44“A Thorn With a Smile” (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, April 25, 2016. the Progress & Freedom Foundation, the State Policy Network, and the American Legislative Exchange Council.45“Kent Lassman,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/s1D1Z 46“Gibbons spurns lobbying to seek medical research investments,” Politico, March 22, 2016. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/MtXeC
Actions
February 24, 2023
CEI was listed as a member of a group introduced by the Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow (CFACT), described as a “new coalition of energy, national security and public policy groups” called the Net Zero Reality Coalition.47(Press Release). “New coalition urges Congress to investigate risks of net-zero energy actions,” CFACT, February 24, 2023. Archived October 2, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YJQEg
CFACT’s Paul Driessen was listed as the group’s coordinator while members included CFACT, the Competitive Enterprise Institute, the Heartland Institute, E&E Legal, and the International Climate Science Coalition (ICSC) and “and other public policy organizations that have long sought responsible, science-focused, reality-based laws and policies.”48(Press Release). “New coalition urges Congress to investigate risks of net-zero energy actions,” CFACT, February 24, 2023. Archived October 2, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YJQEg
โAmerica cannot afford to abandon its reliable, affordable, multifaceted energy system, and try to replace it with a wind, solar and battery system that exists only in government proclamations and legislative mandates,โ Driessen said in CFACT’s press release.49(Press Release). “New coalition urges Congress to investigate risks of net-zero energy actions,” CFACT, February 24, 2023. Archived October 2, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YJQEg
December 17, 2021
CEI filed an Amicus Curiae brief in West Virginia v. EPA, a U.S. Supreme Court case that reduced the EPAโs ability to regulate power plants under the Obama administrationโs Clean Power Plan. In June 2022, the court ruled 6-3 against the EPA.50“BRIEF OF AMICUS CURIAE THE COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONERS in STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA, ET AL., Petitioners, v. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY AND MICHAEL REGAN, ADMINISTRATOR OF THE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, Respondents,” Supreme Court of the United States docket nos. 20-1530, 20-1531, 20-1778, 20-1780
October 31โNovember 12, 2021
CEI attended the twenty-sixth session of the Conference of the Parties (COP26) in Glasgow, according to the official provisional list of registered participants (PLOP).51“Provisional list of registered participants” (PDF), UNFCCC, November 1, 2021. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
Listed CEI representatives included:
- Elena Morano โ Representative, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow
- James Taylor โ President, Heartland Institute
- Jessica Morano โ Representative, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow
- Kent Lassman โ President
- Kevin Williamson
- Myron Ebell โ Director, Center for Energy and Environment
July 23, 2021
In an article at CEI’s blog, CEI research associate Jack Elbaum argued the creation of a Civilian Climate Corps (CCC) would be unable to address a climate emergency. Elbaum pointed to a letter to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi and Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer supporting a CCC program, and wrote his CEI blog post “will focus on the first: the increasingly dire effects of climate change.”52Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
“As a result, they argue, it should be of paramount importance to combat these devastating effects of climate change through a new CCC. Butโeven though climate change is real and has mostly negative effectsโthis justification is weak on further examination,” Elbaum wrote.53Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
Citing Bjorn Lomborg, Elbaum wrote “the truth is that economic damage [due to climate change] would have gotten worse whether or not more severe natural disasters were taking place because of a phenomenon known as the ‘expanding bullโs-eye effect.'”54Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
Elbaum went on to cite Roger Pielke, Jr. to claim hurricanes have not gotten worse and that “since 1990, economic damage from natural disasters has actually declined” if measured is a percentage of GDP.55Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
In another Lomborg citation, he suggests forest fires haven’t been getting worse. “[T]he levels of burning we are seeing today are not unprecedented or even close to the worst we have experienced since 1900.”56Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
May 2021
The Competitive Enterprise Institute hired Kevin Williamson, a columnist and correspondent at the National Review, to lead a project to examine “the modern environmental movement, its culture, and advocacy,” E&E News reported. 57Timothy Cama. “Group hires conservative writer to examine green movement,” E&E News, May 12, 2021. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
April 6, 2020
CEI, represented by Myron Ebell, was signatory to an American Energy Alliance letter to President Donald Trump supporting the Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicles Rule which would scrap federal fuel economy mandates under the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) program.58CAFE-Coaliton-to-Trump-April-2020-9 (PDF), American Energy Alliance.
Describing CAFE, the letter contends: โThose families and individuals who prefer or need trucks, SUVs, and crossovers pay more to subsidize those who buy smaller vehicles or electric vehicles under the existing mandate. This significant, needless, and unjust cost is a very real regressive tax on American families that has made our country worse off.โ59CAFE-Coaliton-to-Trump-April-2020-9 (PDF), American Energy Alliance.
March 23, 2020
As reported at DeSmog,60Dana Drugmand. โUnder Cover of Pandemic, Fossil Fuel Interests Unleash Lobbying Frenzy,โ DeSmog, April 2, 2020. Life:Powered sent a letter to Congress critical of the COVID-19 stimulus package for including โtax incentives and spending for unreliable ‘green’ energy programs.โ61Coronavirus Stimulus Letter, Life:Powered, March 23, 2020. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
The letter, to which CEI is a signatory, concludes:62Coronavirus Stimulus Letter, Life:Powered, March 23, 2020. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
โThis is no time for political games. Climate change is not an immediate threat to humanity. Climate-related deaths have declined 98.9% in the last century, and humanity is growing more and more resilient thanks to the availability of affordable, reliable energy. On behalf of all Americans, we urge you to oppose any stimulus proposals that carve out special treatment for or bail out any energy companies and focus instead on stopping COVID-19.โ
The full list of signatories is below:
Name | Title | Organization |
Jason Isaac | Senior Manager & Distinguished Fellow | Life:Powered/Texas Public Policy Foundation |
Myron Ebell | Director, Center for Energy and Environment | Competitive Enterprise Institute |
Bette Grande | CEO | Roughrider Policy Center |
Ellen Weaver | President & CEO | Palmetto Promise Institute |
Isaac Orr | Policy Fellow | Center of the American Experiment |
Bethany Marcum | Executive Director | Alaska Policy Forum |
David T. Stevenson | Director, Center for Energy and Environment | Caesar Rodney Institute |
Donald van der Vaart | Senior Fellow | John Locke Foundation |
Jason Hayes | Director of Environmental Policy | Mackinac Center for Public Policy |
John Droz, Jr. | Founder | Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions |
George K. Rasley, Jr. | Managing Editor | ConservativeHQ.com |
Becky Norton Dunlop | Former Secretary of Natural Resources | Commonwealth of Virginia |
James L. Martin | Founder/Chairman | 60 Plus Association |
Saulius โSaulโ Anuzis | President | 60 Plus Association |
Ken Blackwell | Senior Fellow | Family Research Council |
Eunie Smith | President | Eagle Forum |
Jenny Beth Martin | Honorary Chairman | Tea Party Patriots Action |
Jon Caldara | President | Independence Institute |
L. Brent Bozell, III | Founder and President | Media Research Center |
Jason Pye | Vice President of Legislative Affairs | FreedomWorks |
Jameson Taylor | Vice President for Policy | Mississippi Center for Public Policy |
Carol Platt Liebau | President | Yankee Institute |
Mike Stenhouse | CEO | Rhode Island Center for Freedom & Prosperity |
Daniel Erspamer | CEO | Pelican Institute for Public Policy |
Christian N. Braunlich | President | Thomas Jefferson Institute for Public Policy |
Todd Myers | Environmental Director | Washington Policy Center |
July 9, 2019
CEI sent a formal request to NASA demanding a correction to the administrationโs statement that 97% of scientists endorse the reality of anthropogenic climate change.63(Press Release). โCEI Files Formal Complaint Regarding NASA’s Claim of 97% Climate Scientist Agreement on Global Warming,โ CEI.org, July 10, 2019. Archived July 24, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/1N4GT. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
In the letter sent to NASAโs Chief Information Officer, CEI attorneys claimed the administrationโs position has been โwidely criticizedโ and cited critiques of the statement and its underlying research by Richard Tol, David Legates, Willie Soon, and Christopher Monckton. Also cited were publications by Roy Spencer, David Henderson, Alex Epstein, and Michael Bastasch disputing the consensus viewpoint on climate change.64(Press Release). โCEI Files Formal Complaint Regarding NASA’s Claim of 97% Climate Scientist Agreement on Global Warming,โ CEI.org, July 10, 2019. Archived July 24, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/1N4GT. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
The letter concluded by suggesting that NASA’s statement could be in violation of federal guidelines:
“Presenting such an inaccurate, unreliable, and biased statement is a violation of the Information Quality Act. NASA should stop distributing that statement by removing it from the NASA website. A correction, informing the public that this prior statement did not have a proper basis in fact and should not be relied upon, would also help relieve the problems caused by its prior distribution.”
July 30, 2019
CEI released a report authored by Kent Lassman and Power the Futureโs Daniel Turner that presented a speculative economic assessment of the proposed Green New Deal, posing the question:65Kent Lassman, Daniel Turner. โWhat the Green New Deal Could Cost a Typical Household,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 30, 2019. Archived July 30, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/Sg62w. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
“What would it actually mean to implement significant portions of proposal?โ (sic)
According to Lassman and Turner, their report โrequires a considerable number of assumptionsโ and relied in part on data compiled by the American Enterprise Institute. The reportโs introduction predicted a โsteep economic depressionโ based on calculations of average household cost increases from the implementation of the GND.
In concluding, Lassman and Turner admitted that their analysis contained a wide variance in data but suggested that it was a โmark of humility.โ Their final word on the matter was that:
โthe Green New Deal is an unserious proposal that is at best negligent in its anticipation of transition costs and at worst is a politically motivated policy whose creativity is outweighed by its enormous potential for economic destruction.โ
The authors did not comment on the science of climate change or the consensus perspective of its present and future impacts.
June 2019
The New York Times, reporting on newly released government emails resulting from a freedom of information request by the Sierra Club, described how Myron Ebell and the Competitive Enterprise Institute โweighed in at a critical juncture in the policymaking processโ to push President Trump to roll back emissions standards and freeze fuel economy standards for vehicles.66Hiroko Tabuchi. โClimate Change Denialists Dubbed Auto Makers the โOppositionโ in Fight Over Trumpโs Emissions Rollback,โ The New York Times, July 2, 2019. Archived July 3, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Dr5mP
โThe automakers are not going to help and may be part of the opposition,โ wrote Ebell in a May 2018 email to supporters and an official at the Environmental Protection Agency.67Hiroko Tabuchi. โClimate Change Denialists Dubbed Auto Makers the โOppositionโ in Fight Over Trumpโs Emissions Rollback,โ The New York Times, July 2, 2019. Archived July 3, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Dr5mP
In a May 10, 2018 letter to Trump, Ebell along with two other people that had assisted with the transition wrote:68Hiroko Tabuchi. โClimate Change Denialists Dubbed Auto Makers the โOppositionโ in Fight Over Trumpโs Emissions Rollback,โ The New York Times, July 2, 2019. Archived July 3, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Dr5mP
“We understand that some in the automaker community have expressed concerns about your current plans to reform the program. Their main concern is the expected legal battle with California,โ they wrote. โIn fact, what many liberal California politicians really want to do is ban gasoline-powered cars altogether.”
“You should dismiss this concern. We agree that in an ideal world, California would negotiate with you in good faith, but we all know that is not a reality in this current political climate.”
May 9, 2019
The Competitive Enterprise Institute, represented by Myron Ebell, signed on to an open letter organized by the American Energy Alliance designed to fight against an electric vehicle tax credit.69โDear Senator Grassley, Senator Wyden, Representative Neal and Representative Brady:โ May 9, 2019. Retrieved from The Daily Caller. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/NXbZE
“The American Energy Alliance has organized a coalition to proclaim in one unified voice that there should be no expansion of the misguided electric vehicle tax credit,โ Thomas Pyle wrote in a statement, quoted at The Daily Caller. โThere is no question that the electric vehicle tax credit distorts the auto market to no gain.”70Christ White. โCONSERVATIVES WARN LAWMAKERS: TESLAโS TAX CREDITS โOVERWHELMINGLY BENEFIT THE RICHโ,โThe Daily Caller, May 9, 2019. Archived May 9, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/qzvF3
According to Pyle and others who signed the letter, electric vehicle tax credits โoverwhelmingly benefit the rich.โ DeSmog’s Koch vs. Clean project has systematically debunked this, among other well-rehearsed talking points and misinformation put forward by industry about electric vehicles.71Christ White. โCONSERVATIVES WARN LAWMAKERS: TESLAโS TAX CREDITS โOVERWHELMINGLY BENEFIT THE RICHโ,โThe Daily Caller, May 9, 2019. Archived May 9, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/qzvF3
The letter cites research by the Pacific Research Institute (PRI), a group that has received over $600,000 from ExxonMobil and millions from โdark moneyโ groups DonorsTrust and Donors Capital Fund.
March 20, 2019
The Inletkeeper reported CEI, among other front groups funded by the Koch brothers, was working to exert influence in the state of Alaska. For example, CEI wrote a letter to criticize the Bristol Bay Assessment conducted by the EPA.
The EPA‘s assessment had found that proposals for a Pebble Mine in the Bristol Bay region of Alaska posed significant risks to people, water, and fish in the region.72Bob Shavelson. โTHE PEBBLE MINE & THE KOCHTOPUS,โ Inletkeeper, March 28, 2019. Archived April 1, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/MKHGP
CEI wrote a letter to the EPA requesting correction or withdrawal of the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessment.73โRe: Request for Correction Number 19001 Pertaining to the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessmentโ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, March 20, 2019. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
โWe believe the best course of action for the agency would be to withdraw this highly flawed assessment and rescind the use of it to veto the Pebble project,โ CEI’s letter reads.
A follow-up letter by Steptoe & Johnson LLP, representing Pebble Limited Partnership (โPLPโ), was supportive of the CEI’s stance.74โRe: Pebble Limited Partnership Submission in Support of Information Quality Act Request for Correction by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (RFC 19001)โ (PDF), Steptoe & Johnson LLP. Retrieved from EPA.gov.
January 2019
The Competitive Enterprise Institute ran an ad campaign75โMeet the Press used to be the gold-standard for political debate. NOT ANYMORE.,โ NBCClimatedebate.cei.org. Archived January 25, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Ahd9d attacking the NBC for excluding climate change deniers from a โMeet the Pressโ episode dedicated to climate change.76Amy Russo. โChuck Todd Refuses To Give Air Time To Climate Deniers: ‘The Science Is Settled’,โ HuffPost, December 31, 2018.
โWeโre not going to give time to climate deniers,โ Chuck Todd said on the NBC program. โThe science is settled even if political opinion is not.โ
โWeโre not going to debate climate change, the existence of it. The Earth is getting hotter and human activity is a major cause. Period.โ
CEI purchased ads in the Washington Post and Wall Street Journal criticizing Chuck Todd and the NBC, and also launched a YouTube video claiming the program was โsilencing dissent.โ77โCEI Ad: Chuck Todd & NBC’s Meet the Press: Stop Denying the Real Climate Debate,โ YouTube video uploaded by user โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ January 18, 2019. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
December 11, 2018
The Competitive Enterprise Institute sued the Department of Energy for being unresponsive to its requests for information relating to carbon capture and sequestration tax credits. The tax credits, designated as 45Q, entered into effect in 2008 and provide rebates per ton of carbon reused or sequestered permanently.78Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Archived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
CEI claimed that large banks and investment firms have lobbied DOE to increase the rebate amount and make them permanent to boost profit margins.79Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Archived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
FOIA requests filed by CEI in May 2017 sought to reveal lobbying efforts aimed at preserving and expanding the 45Q rebates.Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Ar80chived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
CEIโs lawsuit stated:
โAs the lobbying campaign intensified to expand 45Q into a limitless and permanent source of revenue for certain parties, DOEโs posture in responding to this request changed dramatically.โ81Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Archived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
August 2018
In 2018 CEI published a report critical of the collaboration between state officials and environmental organizations and donors in advancing climate change-related initiatives authored by former CEI senior fellow, Christopher Horner.82Christopher C. Horner. “Law Enforcement for Rent: How Special Interests Fund Climate Policy through State Attorneys General” (PDF), CEI, July 27, 2018 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
Titled, โLaw Enforcement for Rent: How Special Interests Fund Climate Policy through State Attorneys General,” the report alleged improper utilization of off-the-books staff members paid for by climate-conscious donors, Horner calls for state investigations of Governors Brown (CA), Cuomo (NY), and Inslee (WA) for accepting assistance from outside organizations.83Christopher C. Horner. “Law Enforcement for Rent: How Special Interests Fund Climate Policy through State Attorneys General” (PDF), CEI, July 27, 2018 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
In 2018, the year CEI published Hornerโs report, five of CEIโs eleven board members had links to groups funded by present or historic players in the fossil fuel industry:84“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
Kristina Crane โ Operations manager for the Atlas Network,85“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu which according to ExxonSecrets has received $1,082,500 from ExxonMobil since 1998.86“FACTSHEET: Atlas Economic Research Foundation, Atlas; AERF,” ExxonSecrets.org. Archived June 28, 2017. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/4Iisq Crane began her career at Cato Institute.87“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu See additional reporting from DeSmog on the Cato Institute’s connections.88Mitchell Anderson. “The Cato Institute and Patrick Michaels โ It’s a Small World After All,” DeSmog, May 26, 2009.
Michael W. Gleba โ President and trustee of the Sarah Scaife Foundation and treasurer and trustee of the Carthage Foundation.89“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu Scaife Family Foundations have been funded by the Mellon familyโs industrial, oil and banking fortune.
Michael S. Greve โ Professor at George Mason University and visiting scholar at the American Enterprise Institute.90“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu George Mason University has been a significant recipient of funding from foundations controlled by the Koch family. Charles Koch and his late brother David Koch amassed their fortunes through Koch Industries and a wide range of related companies that hold significant interests in the fossil fuel industry.
Kent Lassman โ In addition to his role as president and CEO of the Competitive Enterprise Institute, Lassman served on the State Policy Network‘s President’s Advisory Council from 2003 to 2008.91“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
Fred L. Smith โ Founder of CEI.92“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
In 2018, CEIโs website provided a direct hyperlink to the Cooler Heads Coalition and profiled the Cooler Heads Coalition chair Myron Ebell: โMyron Ebell is director of the Center for Energy and the Environment at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. Ebell also chairs the Cooler Heads Coalition.โ93“Myron Ebell,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 23, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/P6GKR
CEI’s Energy and Environment web page read as follows in January 2018:94“Energy and Environment,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 29, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gKUHO
“CEI’s largest program takes on all the hard energy and climate issues. CEI questions global warming alarmism, makes the case for access to affordable energy, and opposes energy-rationing policies, including the Paris Climate Treaty, Kyoto Protocol, cap-and-trade legislation, and EPA regulation of greenhouse gas emissions. CEI also opposes all government mandates and subsidies for conventional and alternative energy technologies.”
July 18, 2018
The Competitive Enterprise Institute, represented by Kent Lassman, was among signatories of a letter supporting an anti-carbon tax resolution from House Majority Whip Steve Scalise (R-La.) and Rep. David McKinley (R-W.Va.)95โ41 Conservative Groups Support Scalise/McKinley Anti-Carbon Tax Resolution,โ Americans for Tax Reform, July 18, 2018. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
โWe oppose any carbon tax. We oppose a carbon tax because it would lead to less income and fewer jobs for American families,โ the letter read. โWe support the House Concurrent Resolution in opposition to a job-killing carbon tax and urge members to co-sponsor and support this effort.โ96โ41 Conservative Groups Support Scalise/McKinley Anti-Carbon Tax Resolution,โ Americans for Tax Reform, July 18, 2018. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
The resolution would call a carbon tax โdetrimental to the United States economy.โE&E News reported it was similar to a measure that passed the House in 2016. Rep. Carlos Curbelo of Florida, co-chairman of the Climate Solutions Caucus, said he would not vote for the resolution.97Nick Sobczyk. โHouse voting on anti-carbon-tax measure: ‘Pass the popcorn’,โ E&E News, July 16, 2018. Archived Aug 2, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/aTP8h
โProtecting our environment and economic growth are not mutually exclusive,โ he said in a statement. โThe resolution presents a false choice.โ98Nick Sobczyk. โHouse voting on anti-carbon-tax measure: ‘Pass the popcorn’,โ E&E News, July 16, 2018. Archived Aug 2, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/aTP8h
The Citizens’ Climate Lobby (CCL) issued a point-by-point rebuttal of the measure when it was first introduced.99โTeaching opportunities from House Concurrent Resolution 119 (H.Con.Res.119)โ (PDF), Citizens’ Climate Lobby, April 30, 2018.
May 10, 2018
The Competitive Enterprise Institute, represented by Myron Ebell, was one of three signatories of an open letter to Donald Trump requesting that he follow through on a major rollback of Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards for the auto industry.100โDear Mr. Presidentโ (PDF), Institute for Energy Research, May 10, 2018. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
The open letter was sent amid concerns from the the auto industry that the rollback could result in a โregulatory nightmare,โ with potentially years of litigation from California and a lack of regulatory certainty. Bill Ford, chairman of Ford Motor Co., said at the company’s annual meeting, โWe are not asking the administration for a rollback.โ
He said, โWe want California at the table, and we want one national standard.โ101Ben Jervey. โOn Rollbacks, Automakers Tell Trump ‘Not So Fast,’ Kochs Say ‘Burn More Gas’,โDeSmog, May 14, 2018.
Despite this, presidential transition team members Pyle, Myron Ebell, and Shirley Ybarra pleaded with Trump, saying โYou should dismiss this concern.โ The letter continues: โWe agree that in an ideal world, California would negotiate with you in good faith, but we all know that is not a reality in this current political climate.โ Signatories also the existing mandate would mean โthose consumers who prefer trucks, SUVs, or crossovers pay more to subsidize those who buy smaller vehicles.โ
โThese significant increases in the average price of a car or truck are a very real regressive tax on American families that make consumers poorer and the economy weaker,โ Pyle, Ebell, and Ybarra wrote.
December 12, 2017
CEI President Kent Lassman wrote at CEI that he had had several meetings at the White House, including invitations from Scott Pruitt.102Kent Lassma. โPresident’s Fall Policy Update,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, December 12, 2017. Archived December 28, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/eohIy
โAdministrator Scott Pruitt invited me along with three colleagues for a signing ceremony where he officially put in place new conflict of interest requirements for the 22 scientific advisory boards at the EPA,โ Lassman wrote, concluding:
โAs a representative of the dozens of analysts, fellows, and lawyers who toil away at CEI, in the last two months Iโve found myself in multiple meetings at Office of Mangement [sic] and Budget, the EPA, and the White House. I can make an unqualified assertion: It is nice when the government wants our advice on how to shape a policy proposal.โ
2017
Following up from a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request filed in September 2017, CEI filed suit agains the State Department to obtain records โabout outside influence in developing the controversial Paris climate treaty during the Obama administration.โ103โCEI Sues State Department for Paris Climate Treaty Docs,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, October 3, 2017. Archived October 6, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8QAwz
The request targets Todd Stern, former Special Envoy for Climate Change, and Sue Biniaz, a former legal adviser, and includes emails from both government and private email accounts.
โIn the absence of the Trump administration taking the initiative to review the internal record of the disgraceful process of circumventing the Senate and the U.S. Constitution to enter the Paris climate treaty, we will continue seeking to make public all of that record we are able,โ said CEI Fellow Chris Horner.
View the full CEI complaint, filed October 3, 2017.
May 18, 2017
CEI published a video pushing President Donald Trump to keep his promise, and withdraw from the Paris Climate treaty. The ad’s call to action read as follows:104โParis Climate Treaty TV Ad: Mr. President, Keep your Promise,โ YouTube video uploaded by user Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
โMr. President: Donโt Listen to the Swamp. Keep Your Promise. Withdraw from the Paris Climate Treaty.โ
Trump announced his official decision to withdraw from the Paris Accord on June 1, 2017.105Sharon Kelly. โTrump Abandons Paris Climate Deal At Bidding of Fossil Fuel Interests,โ DeSmog, June 1, 2017. CNN reported that Myron Ebell โlikely had as much influence shaping Trumpโs decision as any single individual,โ with CEI potentially playing a key role in the decision.106โThe man behind the decision to pull out of the Paris agreement,โ CNN, June 3, 2017. Archived June 5, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/G82Jt
May 8, 2017
The Competitive Enterprise Institute, represented by Myron Ebell, was listed on an open letter to President Donald J. Trump urging him โto withdraw fully from the Paris Climate Treaty and to stop all taxpayer funding of UN global warming programs.โ107โDear Mr. Presidentโ (PDF), retrieved from Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
DeSmog reported that the 40 groups represented in the letter, including the Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI), The Heartland Institute, and the Heritage Foundation, have received a combined total of millions of dollars from the Koch Brothers, ExxonMobil, and other industry groups.108Graham Readfearn. โConservative Groups Pushing Trump To Exit Paris Climate Deal Have Taken Millions From Koch Brothers, Exxon,โ DeSmog, May 10, 2017.
Analysis also showed that the groups accepted about $80 million through Donors Capital Fund and Donors Trust, two groups that have been confirmed is a key financial source for key U.S-based climate change denial groups.109Susanne Goldberg. โConservative groups spend up to $1bn a year to fight action on climate change,โ The Guardian, December 20, 2013. Archived May 12, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/TB2yy
February 2017
CEI’s general counsel Sam Kazman filed a petition on behalf of CEI with the Science and Environmental Policy Project (SEPP) requesting that the EPA review the endangerment finding on CO2 Emissions. Individual petitioners included members of SEPP’s Board of Directors: Donna Bethell, Kenneth A. Haapala, Thomas Sheahen, and S. Fred Singer.110โPetition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Science and Environmental Policy Project for Rulemaking on the Subject of Greenhouse Gases and Their Impact on Public Health and Welfare, in Connection with EPAโs 2009 Endangerment Finding, 74 FR 66,496 (Dec. 15, 2009)โ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, February 17, 2017.
The petition makes a number of statements contrary to the mainstream consensus regarding climate change. First, it claims that โThere Has Been No Statistically Significant Atmospheric Warming Despite a Continued Increase in Atmospheric Carbon Dioxide Levelsโ โ Citing a post on the personal website of climate change denier Roy Spencer as evidence for the lack of warming.111โPetition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Science and Environmental Policy Project for Rulemaking on the Subject of Greenhouse Gases and Their Impact on Public Health and Welfare, in Connection with EPAโs 2009 Endangerment Finding, 74 FR 66,496 (Dec. 15, 2009)โ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, February 17, 2017.
The petition’s second claim is that โChanges in Global Temperatures in Recent Decades Are Far From Unusual.โ For this, the citation points to a dead link to the Heartland Institute‘s โIndependent Summary for Policymakers,โ a document created by the Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change and Science and Environmental Policy Project.112โPetition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Science and Environmental Policy Project for Rulemaking on the Subject of Greenhouse Gases and Their Impact on Public Health and Welfare, in Connection with EPAโs 2009 Endangerment Finding, 74 FR 66,496 (Dec. 15, 2009)โ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, February 17, 2017.
Kazman spoke with Michael Bastasch of The Daily Caller regarding the petition, suggesting President Donald Trump may be too distracted to deal with the endangerment finding:113Michael Bastasch. โEXCLUSIVE: EPA Asked To Invalidate A Pillar Of Obamaโs Climate Agenda,โ The Daily Caller, April 10, 2010. Archived November 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mDuqB
โโI think theyโre going to have a lot of trouble on the other things they want to get done without addressing the endangerment finding,โ Kazman said.114Michael Bastasch. โEXCLUSIVE: EPA Asked To Invalidate A Pillar Of Obamaโs Climate Agenda,โ The Daily Caller, April 10, 2010. Archived November 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mDuqB
A similar petition was sent by the Concerned Household Electricity Consumers Council (CHECC). Breitbart News also gave coverage to the CHECC and CEI petitions.115โEnvironmental Groups Ask EPA to Rescind Obamaโs โEndangerment Findingโ,โ Breitbart, April 11, 2017. Archived November 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JSLKd
July 12, 2016
The Competitive Enterprise Institute, represented by Kent Lassman, was among 22 groups represented in a โCoalitionโ open letter pushing back against what the Heartland Institute describes as an โaffront to free speech.โ The groups are responding to the recent Web of Denial Resolution brought up in the Senate, calling out fossil fuel industry-funded groups denying climate change.116Jim Lakely. โ#WebOfDenial Push by Senate Dems Exposes Their Hatred of Free Speech,โ Somewhat Reasonable (Heartland Institute Blog), July 12, 2016. Archived July 14, 2016.
According to the Climate Investigations Center, all but one of the open letter’s signatory organizations have taken money (totalling at least $92 million since 1997) from the โclimate denial webโ including Koch Brothers’ various foundations, ExxonMobil, and two โDark Moneyโ organizations, Donors Trust and Donors Capital Fund.117Cindy Baxter. โFront Groups Attacking #WebofDenial Senate Action Took Over $92M in Dark, Dirty Money,โ DeSmog, July 14, 2016. Originally posted at Climate Investigations Center.
Championed by Senators Whitehouse, Markey, Schatz, Boxer, Merkley, Warren, Sanders, and Franken, the resolution condemns what they are calling the #WebOfDenial โ โinterconnected groups โ funded by the Koch brothers, major fossil fuel companies like ExxonMobil and Peabody Coal, identity-scrubbing groups like Donors Trust and Donors Capital, and their allies โ developed and executed a massive campaign to deceive the public about climate change to halt climate action and protect their bottom lines.โ118Brendan Demelle. โSenators Launch Resolution, Speech Blitz Calling Out #WebOfDenial Blocking Climate Action,โ DeSmog, July 11, 2016.
The open letter addresses the senators, calling them โtyrantsโ:
โWe hear you. Your threat is clear: There is a heavy and inconvenient cost to disagreeing with you. Calls for debate will be met with political retribution. Thatโs called tyranny. And, we reject it.โ119“Coalition Letter to Senate Web of Denial Resolution” (PDF). Retrieved from the Heartland Institute. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
The full list of signatories and their respective organizations is as follows:
- Grover Norquist โ Americans for Tax Reform
- Lisa B. Nelson โ American Legislative Exchange Council
- John A. Charles, Jr. โ Cascade Policy Institute
- David Rothbard โ Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow
- Kent Lassman โ Competitive Enterprise Institute
- Nicole Neily โ Franklin Center for Government and Policy Integrity
- Benita Dodd โ Georgia Public Policy Foundation
- Bridgett Wagner โ The Heritage Foundation
- Fred Birnbaum โ Idaho Freedom Foundation
- Joseph Bast โ The Heartland Institute
- J. Robert McClure III โ James Madison Institute
- Brett Healy โ The John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy
- Kory Swanson โ John Locke Foundation
- Dave Trabert โ Kansas Policy Institute
- Jason Hayes โ Mackinac Center for Public Policy
- Brent Mead โ Montana Policy Institute
- Sharon J. Rossie โ Nevada Policy Research Institute
- Sally Pipes โ Pacific Research Institute
- Kevin Kane โ Pelican Institute for Public Policy
- Paul J. Gessing โ Rio Grande Foundation
- Lynn Taylor โ Virginia Institute for Public Policy
- Carol Platt Liebau โ Yankee Institute for Public Policy
June 6, 2016
Following CEI’s subpoena from Claude Walker, Attorney General for the U.S. Virgin Islands, the Competitive Enterprise Institute received a letter of support signed by thirty-one organizations described as a โbroad coalition of free market groups.โ120Brett Healy. โMacIver Stands With Competitive Enterprise Institute In Battle Over Free Speech,โ MacIver Institute, June 6, 2016. Archived June 23, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Lqjyq
โThis subpoena was an all-out assault on free speech. Forcing the CEI to hand over private information to government officials is an affront to the First Amendment rights of all Americans,โ the letter states.
The full letter (see PDF) asserts that the subpoena, while it was eventually withdrawn, was a โdangerous precedent.โ121โDear Kentโ (PDF), June, 2016. Retrieved from http://www.maciverinstitute.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
โFree market and taxpayer groups have been under assault by government officials including the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This is just another example of how the government is engaging in selective targeting based on a political agenda that is meant to intimidate others from participating and engaging in any debate that may run contrast to the position of the current administration.โ
Signatories listed included the following:122โDear Kentโ (PDF), June, 2016. Retrieved from http://www.maciverinstitute.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- David Williams โ President, Taxpayers Protection Alliance
- Dan Greenberg โ President, Advance Arkansas Institute
- Dan Schneider โ Executive Director, American Conservative Union
- Lisa B. Nelson โ CEO, American Legislative Exchange Council
- Brent Wm. Gardner โ Vice President of Government Affairs, Americans for Prosperity
- Grover Norquist โ President, Americans for Tax Reform
- Justin Owen โ President & CEO, Beacon Center of Tennessee
- Mark Bucher โ CEO, California Policy Center
- John Hinderaker โ President, Center of the American Experiment
- Norm Singleton โ President, Campaign for Liberty
- Andrew F. Quinlan โ President, Center for Freedom and Prosperity
- Jeffrey Mazzella โ President, Center for Individual Freedom
- Tom Schatz โ President, Citizens Against Government Waste
- Col Francis X. De Luca USMCR (Ret) โ President, Civitas Institute
- Robert Roper โ President, Ethan Allen Institute
- Tarren Bragdon โ CEO, Foundation for Government Accountability
- Tom McCabe โ CEO, Freedom Foundation
- George Landrith โ President, Frontiers of Freedom
- Kelly McCutchen โ President and CEO, Georgia Public Policy Foundation
- Andresen Blom โ Executive Director, Grassroot Hawaii Action, Inc.
- Joseph Bast โ President, Heartland Institute
- Sabrina Schaeffer โ Executive Director, Independent Women’s Forum
- Heather Higgins โ President & CEO, Independent Women’s Voice
- Andrew Langer โ President, Institute for Liberty
- Bob McClure โ President and CEO, The James Madison Institute
- Brett Healy โ President, The John K. MacIver Institute for Public Policy
- Seton Motley โ President, Less Government
- Brandon Arnold โ Vice President, National Taxpayers Union
- Kevin P. Kane โ President, Pelican Institute for Public Policy
- Mike Stenhouse โ CEO, Rhode Island Center for Freedom and Prosperity
- Paul J. Gessing โ President, Rio Grande Foundation
May 18, 2016
The Competitive Enterprise Institute (CEI) placed a full page color advertisement in The New York Times123โCEI Runs โAbuse of Powerโ Ad In New York Times,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2016. Archived May 31, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DF7gW titled โAbuse of Powerโ (PDF). The ad served as an open letter from 43 signatories including organizations and individuals in response to New York Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, U.S. Virgin Islands Attorney General Claude Walker, and the coalition of Attorneys General investigating groups denying man-made climate change.124 โAbuse of Power: All Americans have the right to support causes they believe inโ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
โAttempts to intimidate CEI and our allies and silence our policy research are unconstitutional,โ said CEI president Kent Lassman. โThe First Amendment protects us and everyone has a duty to respect it โ even state attorneys general. CEI will continue to fight for all Americans to support the causes in which they believe.โ125โCEI Runs โAbuse of Powerโ Ad In New York Times,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2016. Archived May 31, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DF7gW
The Competitive Enterprise Institute received a subpoena from AG Walker on April 7, 2016. On April 20, CEI filed an objection to the subpoena calling it โoffensive,โ โun-American,โ and โunlawful,โ and are contending that AG Walker is โviolating CEIโs First Amendment rights.โ126โCEI Runs โAbuse of Powerโ Ad In New York Times,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2016. Archived May 31, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DF7gW
The โfreedom of speechโ argument was echoed by ExxonMobil’s legal team, as well as numerous other conservative groups including the Pacific Legal Foundation, Heritage Foundation and the recently-formed Free Speech in Science Project, a group created by the same lawyers who defended the Competitive Enterprise Institute in the past.127Steve Horn. โExxon’s Lawyer in Climate Science Probe Has History Helping Big Tobacco and NFL Defend Against Health Claims,โ DeSmog, May 10, 2016.
The CEI letter lists the following signatories:
- Kent Lassman โ President & CEO, Competitive Enterprise Institute
- C. Boyden Gray โ Former White House Counsel
- Andrew C. McCarthy โ Former Chief Assistant United States Attorney, Southern District of New York
- Michael B. Mukasey โ U.S. Attorney General, 2007-2009; U.S. District Judge, 1988-2006
- Ross McKitrick โ Professor of Economics, University of Guelph
- Ronald D. Rotunda โ Distinguished Professor of Jurisprudence, Chapman University
- Richard S. Lindzen โ Professor Emeritus of Atmospheric Sciences, MIT
- William Happer โ Emeritus Professor of Physics, Princeton University
- Jim DeMint โ President, The Heritage Foundation
- James H. Amos, Jr. โ President & CEO, National Center for Policy Analysis
- John A. Baden โ Chairman, Foundation for Research on Economics & the Environment
- Lisa B. Nelson โ CEO, American Legislative Exchange Council
- Paul Driessen โ Author & Energy Policy Analyst
- Thomas J. Pyle โ President, Institute for Energy Research
- Steven J. Allen โ Vice President & Chief Investigative Officer, Capital Research Center
- David Ridenour โ President, National Center for Public Policy Research
- Steven J. Milloy โ Publisher, JunkScience.com
- Brooke Rollins โ President & CEO, Texas Public Policy Foundation
- Paul Gessing โ President, Rio Grande Foundation
- Ron Arnold โ Researcher & Author
- William Perry Pendley โ President, Mountain States Legal Foundation
- Adam Brandon โ President & CEO, FreedomWorks
- Hank Campbell โ President, American Council on Science and Health
- Craig Rucker โ Executive Director, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow
- Tom McCabe โ CEO, Freedom Foundation
- Richard B. Belzer โ Economist
- Heather R. Higgins โ President & CEO, Independent Women’s Voice
- Joseph G. Lehman โ President, Mackinac Center for Public Policy
- Sabrina Schaeffer โ Executive Director, Independent Women’s Forum
- Joseph Bast โ President, The Heartland Institute
- John C. Eastman โ Founding Director, The Claremont Instituteโs Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence
- Robert Alt โ President & CEO, The Buckeye Institute
- Michael Pack โ President & CEO, The Claremont Institute
- Josh Blackman โ Assistant Professor, South Texas College of Law
- Lynn Taylor โ President, Tertium Quids
- David Rothbard โ President, Committee for a Constructive Tomorrow
- Tracie Sharp โ President & CEO, State Policy Network
- Kenneth Haapala โ President, Science and Environmental Policy Project
- Tim Phillips โ President, Americans for Prosperity
- Myron Ebell โ Director of the Center for Energy & Environment, Competitive Enterprise Institute
- George Landrith โ President, Frontiers of Freedom
- John Tillman โ CEO, Illinois Policy Institute
- Craig D. Idso โ Chairman, Center for the Study of Carbon Dioxide and Global Change
The ad complained that the undersigned groups were being attacked in the course of several state investigations into Exxonโs campaign of climate denial. According to the Climate Investigations Center, the signatories had received $10.1 million dollars from Exxon, ExxonMobil and the ExxonMobil Foundation from 1997 through 2014.128Kert Davies. “Competitive Enterprise Institute NYT Ad Signatories Got $10 Million from Exxon,” Climate Investigations Center, May 19, 2016. Archived January 29, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XVty8
February 2016
Richard Lindzen, a prominent denier of man-made climate change, appeared on the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Real Clear Radio Hour where he spoke to host Bill Frezza.
Lindzen’s comments were transcribed at Marc Morano’s Climate Depot (reproduced below):129Marc Morano. โMIT Climate Scientist Dr. Richard Lindzen Mocks 97% Consensus: ‘It is propaganda’,โ Climate Depot, February 15, 2016. Archived March 15,2 016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/tRFbd
Question: How much warming do you expect for a doubling of carbon dioxide?
Lindzen: โDoubling is chosen for a very good reason. The dependence of the greenhouse gas effects what is called logarithmic. Which means if you double CO2 from 280 to 560ppm, you would get the same thing you as you would get from doubling from 560 to 10120. Itโs a diminishing return thing.โโThere is no obvious trend for at least 18 years in temperature.โ
Lindzen on 97% consensus:
Lindzen: โIt was the narrative from the beginning. In 1998, [NASAโs James] Hansen made some vague remarks. Newsweek ran a cover that says all scientists agree. Now they never really tell you what they agree on. It is propaganda.โ
โSo all scientists agree itโs probably warmer now than it was at the end of the Little Ice Age. Almost all Scientists agree that if you add CO2 you will have some warming. Maybe very little warming. But it is propaganda to translate that into it is dangerous and we must reduce CO2 etc.
If you can make an ambiguous remark and you have people who will amplify it โthey said it not meโ and he response of the political system is to increase your funding, whatโs not to like?If I look through my department, at least half of them keep mum. Just keep on doing your work, trying to figure out how it works.MIT โhas just announced that they see this bringing in $300 million bucks. It will support all sorts of things.’โ
Inverse magazine offers a brief fact check of Lindzen’s most recent claims. They also quote climate scientist Ray Perrehumbert’s 2012 lecture to the American Geophysical Union:130Sarah Sloat. โClimate Change-Denying MIT Prof. Richard Lindzen Is Suddenly Popular, Still Wrong,โ Inverse, February 17, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Qwpq3
โIt’s OK to be wrong, and [Richard Lindzen] is a smart person, but most people donโt really understand that one way of using your intelligence is to spin ever more clever ways of deceiving yourself. โฆ He has made a career of being wrong in interesting ways about climate science.โ
August 5, 2015
The Competitive Enterprise Institute’s Myron Ebell was interviewed alongside of the Environmental Defense Fundโs Jeremy Symons on the August 5 edition of CSPAN’s Washington Journal. During the interview, EDFโs Symons โconfrontedโ Ebell about his sources of funding, asking, โIsn’t Murray Energy your biggest funder of your dinner? They’re the biggest coal company in the United States for underground mining.โ131โCompetitive Enterprise Institute’s Myron Ebell: โIโd Like To See A Lot More Fundingโ From Big Coal,โ Media Matters, August 5, 2015. Archived August 11, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/skjit
Ebell responded:โI’d like to see a lot more funding from all of those companies, but unfortunately many of the coal companies are now going bankrupt โฆ I would like to have more funding so that I can combat the nonsense put out by the environmental movement.โ
Watch Myron Ebellโs interview on CSPAN here.
July 7โ8, 2015
The Competitive Enterprise Institute was a co-sponsor to the Heartland Institute’s Tenth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC10) in Washington, DC.132โSponsors,โ ICCC10. Archived July 15, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Uyj2K
July 2015
Lawson Bader, representing the Competitive Enterprise Institute, was a speaker at FreedomFest 2015 where he offered a July 10 presentation titled โGavel Out! Legal Opportunities to Push Back Regulatory Overreach.โ133โLawson Bader ‘Gavel Out! Legal Opportunities to Push Back Regulatory Overreach’,โ Freedom Fest, July 10, 2015. Archived June 22, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/p8d0q
Bader also appeared on a July 11 panel discussion titled โThink Tanks Make a Difference.โ Speakers included representatives from a number of prominent Conservative think tanks:134โPANEL Think Tanks Make a Difference!โ FreedomFest, July 11, 2015. Archived June 22, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/raS07
- Elizabeth Ames โ Founder, Free Market Central.com and Think Tank Central.com
- Lawson Bader โ President, Competitive Enterprise Institute
- Peter Goettler โ President & CEO, Cato Institute
- Chris Long โ President & CEO, Intercollegiate Studies Institute
- David Nott โ President, Reason Foundation
February, 2015
Mother Jones magazine reported the Competitive Enterprise Institute was the driving force behind two lawsuits opposing Obamacare including King v. Burwell.135โWhy Is Big Pharma Financing a Conservative Group Trying to Destroy Obamacare?โMother Jones, February 18, 2015. Archived June 21, 2016. WebCiteURL: http://www.webcitation.org/6iSjGF31Q
According to Mother Jones, โIf the CEI-backed case prevails, more than 8 million people could lose their health coverage, premiums could skyrocket 35 percent or more, and the fledgling health care reform effort could collapse. CEI also helped launch Halbig v. Burwell, a similar case that is on hold pending the Supreme Court’s decision in King.โ
The magazine noted that while โEven after CEI filed its anti-Obamacare lawsuits, Big Pharma continued to fund the think tankโ even while the health care law was projected to boost the industry’s profits by up by $25 billion over the following decade. While PHRMA declined whether to say if they would continue to fund CEI, while a GlaxoSmithKline spokeswoman said that โGSK supports efforts to increase access, improve quality and reduce cost growth in the US health system and we remain committed to working with the administration and other stakeholders as the ACA is fully implemented.
โIf that’s the case, though, it begs the question of why Glaxo and other pharmaceutical industry outfits that pledged their support to Obamacare have simultaneously backed a group that for years has been plotting the law’s destruction,โ writes Mother Jones.
October 29, 2014
The Competitive Enterprise Institute filed a lawsuit suing the White House โover a video that claimed global warming might be tied to last year’s extreme cold spell, commonly referred to as the ‘polar vortex,’โ according to a report from ThinkProgress. The White House stated that the video did not โrepresent the official agency position,โ and instead represented the โpersonal opinionsโ of the White House’s Office of Science and Technology director, John Holdren, and OSTP Senior Communications Advisor, Becky Fried.136โLibertarians Sue White House Over Climate Change Video,โ ThinkProgress, October 30, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Uiss6
CEI then filed a Freedom of Information Act request โfor all White House documents and e-mails discussing whether the validity of the science really does constitute Holdren and Friedโs personal opinions, and all documents related to the cost of producing Holdrenโs video.โ The White House came forth with some material following the FOIA request, but withheld 47 additional pieces of information that it claimed contained โprivileged material.โ
September 26, 2014
CEI’s Marlo Lewis attended the โAt the Crossroads; Energy & Climate Policy Summitโ in Houston, Texas, hosted by the Texas Public Policy Foundation and The Heritage Foundation. Lewis presents in โPanel II: Taking Stock of Current Climate Regulation.โ137Marlo Lewis. โSpeakers,โ At the Crossroads; Energy & Climate Policy Summit, Texas Public Policy Foundation, The Heritage Foundation, September 25, 2014. Archived October 3, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/GUScV
July 7โ9, 2014
The Competitive Enterprise Institute was a co-sponsor to the Heartland Institute’s Ninth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC9) in Las Vegas, Nevada.138โICCC9 CoSponsors,โ International Conferences on Climate Change (The Heartland Institute). Archived July 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gclHF
June 2014
The Competitive Enterprise Institute filed a lawsuit against the NSA. CEI President Lawson Bader wrote their reasoning is to gain access to information they have failed to retrieve from the EPA including โcell phone and text message records that we believe will show the degree to which left-leaning environmental pressure groups have had unfettered, back-channel access to EPA leadership.โ139Lawson Bader. โCEI Sues the NSA,โ Human Events, June 16, 2014. Archived June 22, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ri1gT
Bader writes that โthe NSA might have the information that the EPA claims is non-existent. So we are asking the federal government to snitch on itself. And that is actually kind of funny.โ
May 21โ23, 2012
The Competitive Enterprise Institute was listed as a โGold Sponsorโ of the Heartland Institute’s Seventh International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC7).140โCosponsors,โ 7th International Conference on Climate Change. Archived May 10, 2012. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VAY3r
June 30โJuly 1, 2011
The Competitive Enterprise Institute was a co-sponsor (PDF) to the Heartland Institute’s Sixth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC6).141“Sixth International Conference on Climate Change Conference Program” (PDF), The Heartland Institute. Archived July 25, 2015.
July 16, 2010
CEI hosted outspoken climate denier Geoffrey Pohanka at an event at which he delivered an address on the “Global Warming Debate.”142“Geoffrey Pohanka on the Global Warming Debate,” Vimeo video uploaded by user “CEI Video”, July 16, 2010 (according to metadata). Archived August 24, 2010. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/5NrLK
While the video no longer appears available online, see a screenshot of the archived page on Vimeo below. According to metadata, the post was made July 16, 2010.143“Geoffrey Pohanka on the Global Warming Debate,” Vimeo video uploaded by user “CEI Video”, July 16, 2010 (according to metadata). Archived August 24, 2010. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/5NrLK
May 2010
The Competitive Enterprise Institute was a co-sponsor (PDF) to the Heartland Institute’s Fourth International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC4).144“4th International Conference on Climate Change Conference Program” (PDF), The Heartland Institute.
June 2, 2009
The Competitive Enterprise Institute cosponsored the Heartland Institute’s Third International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC3).145โCo-Sponsors,โ Third International Conference on Climate Change. Archived July 14, 2010. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7M3LQ
The conference’s theme was โClimate Change: Scientific Debate and Economic Analysis,โ to reflect Heartland’s belief that that โscientific debate is not over.โ
March 8โ10, 2009
The Competitive Enterprise Institute cosponsored the Heartland Institute’s Second International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC2).146โCo-Sponsors,โ The 2009 International Conference on Climate Change. Archived April 28, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/8pEf7
March 2008
CEI released a national ad campaign โon the Impact of Al Goreโs Global Warming Policies.โ The campaign focused on โthe threat to affordable energy posed by Al Goreโs global warming agenda.โ147Kevin Grandia. โCEI Struggles to Remain Relevant, Bashes Gore,โ DeSmog, March 12, 2008.
Video transcript:
โHere’s the electricity we use at home. Al Gore uses twenty times as much. Mister gore’s friends use lots of energy too. But Al Gore wants to cut our energy use, putting our jobs and our future in jeopardy. Mr Gore’s future, on the other hand, couldn’t be brighter. We depend on reliable, affordable energy for our food, our transportation, our homes. It’s the best protection we have against the hazards of life and it’s even more important to people elsewhere who are struggling to survive; to break out of the prison of poverty. For them, affordable energy is something to hope for and something to celebrate. But what will happen to that hope if we restrict energy use? Some people may have a bright future. But don’t kid yourself: Without affordable energy, hundreds of millions of people won’t have any future at all.โ
CEI’s Sam Kazman, the ad co-creator, said that โGlobal warming activists warn us about the alleged threats from global warming, but are usually silent about the much more immediate threats from global warming policies.โ148โCEI Launches National Ad Campaign on the Impact of Al Goreโs Global Warming Policies,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, March 11, 2008. Archived July 30, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/hGdAl
March 2โ4, 2008
The Competitive Enterprise Institute was a cosponsor of the Heartland Institute’s First International Conference on Climate Change (ICCC1). The conference was titled โGlobal Warming: Truth or Swindle.โ149โSponsorships,โ The 2008 International Conference on climate Change. Archived June 10, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/bxDic
January 2007
CEI offered up their in-house staff as global warming โexpertsโ available to comment on the upcoming release by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change.
CEI described the IPCC’s Summary for Policymakers as a โpropaganda document that will promote global warming alarmism.โ150โGood News for the Planet = Bad News for Climate Alarmists,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, January 30, 2007. Archived July 30, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dcQtd
October 24, 2006
CEI contributed an Amicus (PDF) in a Supreme Court Co2 case. The argument states that โContrary to the Climate Scientistsโ Amicus Brief, There Is Insufficient Evidence That Carbon Dioxide Emissions Will Endanger Public Health or Welfare.โ
The amicus curiae provided by CEI include skeptical scientists Sallie Baliunas, John Christy, Christopher de Freitas, David Legates, Anthony R. Lupo, Patrick Michaels, Joel Schwartz, and Roy Spencer.151โAMICI CURIAE BRIEF OF CLIMATOLOGISTS AND SCIENTISTS SALLIE BALIUNAS, JOHN R.CHRISTY, CHRIS DE FREITAS, DAVID LEGATES, ANTHONY LUPO, PATRICK MICHAELS, JOEL SCHWARTZ, AND ROY W. SPENCER IN SUPPORT OF RESPONDENTSโ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived July 30, 2015.
May 2006
CEI launched a national global warming ad campaign featuring two 60-second television ads with the tagline โCO2: They Call It Pollution; We Call It Life.โ
Transcript:152โGlobal Warming – ‘Energy’,โ (YouTube video), Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2006. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
โThere’s something in these pictures you can’t see. It’s essential to life. We breathe it out; plants breathe it in. It comes from animal life, the oceans, the earth, and the fuels we find in it. It’s called carbon dioxide, CO2. The fuels that produce CO2 have freed us from a world of backbreaking labor, lighting up our lives, allowing us to create and move the things we need; the people we love. [Ominous Music] Now, some politicians want to label carbon dioxide a pollutant. Imagine if they succeed. What would our lives be like then? Carbon dioxide: they call it pollution. We call it life.โ
One of the ads โfocuses on the extent to which the public has received only one side of the glacial melting issue.โ153โCEI To Launch National Global Warming Ad Campaign,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 15, 2006. Archived July 30, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/H3tV2
July 20, 2005
CEI published a โdefinitive article on climate change.โ154Jim Hoggan. โLast Word from the Competitive Enterprise Institute,โ DeSmog, December 8, 2005.
The article (PDF) begins with the admission that โGlobal warming is happening and man is responsible for at least some of itโ but CEI proceeds to argue that โThere is no ‘scientific consensus’ that global warming will cause damaging climate change.โ155Ian Murray. โWhat Every European Should Know About Global Warmingโ (PDF), CEI On Point, July 20, 2005. Archived July 30, 2015.
February 10, 2005
CEI held an event titled โThe Kyoto Protocol and Beyond: A Roundtable Discussion on the Future of International and U. S. Climate Policyโ that examined what Kyoto would mean for future climate policy in the U.S.
Panelists included:156โThe Kyoto Protocol and Beyond: A Roundtable Discussion on the Future of International and U. S. Climate Policy,โ CEI Events and Appearances. Archived April 26, 2006. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/wfPMu
- Senator James M. Inhofe (R-Okla.) โ Chairman, Senate Environment and Public Works Committee.
- Harlan L. Watson โ Senior Climate Negotiator and Special Representative at the U.S. Department of State.
- William O’Keefe โ CEO of the George C. Marshall Institute.
- Myron Ebell โ Director, Global Warming Policy at the Competitive Enterprise Institute.
- Christopher C. Horner โ Counsel to the Cooler Heads Coalition.
- Jeff Kueter (Moderator) โ President of the George C. Marshall Institute.
August 2003
CEI filed a lawsuit against the U.S. government, citing the Data Quality Act. The institute demanded that the National Assessment, a report on climate change, not be disseminated by the government.
The Bush administration settled the lawsuit by adding a disclaimer to the web site where the report is available, stating that it has not been reviewed under the Data Quality Act.157โEarth Last,โ The American Prospect, May 4, 2004. Archived June 7, 2004. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/uV5E0
August 2, 2002
CEI was one of a group of of think-tanks that sent a letter discouraged President Bush from attending the August 2002 World Summit on Sustainable Development.158(Press Release) โCorporate-funded Lobbyists Aimed to Sabotage Johannesburg Summit,โ Africa News, August 19, 2002. Archived July 30, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/1R29d
October 3, 2000
CEI filed a lawsuit over the National Assessment with Senator James Inhofe as a co-plaintiff.
The suit alleged various procedural deficiencies in the report’s preparation and demanded the court block the report’s production or utilization.
Co-plaintiff Jo Ann Emerson, a Republican representative from Missouri, charged, โThe administration is rushing to release a junk science report in violation of current law to try to lend support to its flawed Kyoto Protocol negotiations.โ159โEarth Last,โ The American Prospect, May 4, 2004. Archived June 7, 2004. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/uV5E0
July 1998
Marlo Lewis testified on behalf of the Competitive Enterprise Institute on the issue of โWhy Kyoto Is Not an Insurance Policy.โ
Lewis concludes that there are โseveral reasons why we shouldn’t worry about global warming,โ including how man-kind would supposedly benefit from warming because โplant life grow faster, stronger, and more profuselyโ with increased carbon dioxide.
Lewis does not cite any scientific studies to support these claims.160โWhy Kyoto Is Not an Insurance Policy,โ Junk Science, July 29, 1998. Archived March 3, 2000. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/hOHnY
CEI Contact & Address
As of May, 2016 the Competitive Enterprise Institute’s (CEI) contact address and phone number was listed as follows:161โAbout,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/IpJWA
1899 L St NW, 12th Floor
Washington, DC 20036Phone: 202-331-1010
Fax: 202-331-0640
Related Organizations
- Cooler Heads Coalition โ Paid for and maintained by CEI.162โAbout,โ GlobalWarming.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/nLWnM
- SafeChemicalPolicy.org โ Project of CEI and its Coalition Members.163โAbout,โ SAFEChemicalPolicy.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Lsqzn
Other Resources
- โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ SourceWatch Profile.
- โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ Wikipedia page.
- โCompetitive Enterprise Institute and Global Warming,โ SourceWatch page.
- Greenpeace Investigations research documents on CEI.
Resources
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- 2ExxonSecrets Factsheet: Competitive Enterprise Institute, CEI. Data retrieved August, 2016. Most recent data on file at DeSmog.
- 3“ExxonMobil cuts off funding to (some) climate deniers,” The Christian Science Monitor, May 29, 2008. Archived July 8, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/yVKMW
- 4Andy Kroll. โExposed: The Dark-Money ATM of the Conservative Movement,โ Mother Jones, February 5, 2003. Archived July 24, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/dP34U
- 5Richard Littlemore. “Exxon Acknowledges Climate Change, cuts CEI’s funding,” DeSmog, January 11, 2007.
- 6โMyron Ebell: Director, Center for Energy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived December 29, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/mxjzo
- 7โMyron Ebell: Director, Center for Energy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived September 29, 2012. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/wpXxG
- 8โEnergy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived June 23, 2016. https://archive.ph/f5Dm8
- 9โAbout,โ GlobalWarming.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/nLWnM
- 10Homepage, Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/qdrnO
- 11Homepage, Global Warming.org. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/O44nJ
- 12Homepage, Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived May 28, 2019. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DrxZn
- 13Homepage, Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived May 31, 2020. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/oF2yW
- 14โAbout,โ SAFEChemicalPolicy.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Lsqzn
- 15“Energy and Environment,” CEI. Archived February 4, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/SzReH
- 16โEnergy and Environment,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived June 23, 2016. https://archive.ph/f5Dm8
- 17โGlobal Warming,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived February 11, 2008. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/F1GQQ
- 18โGlobal Warming – ‘Energy’,โ (YouTube video), Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2006. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
- 19Lee Fang. โCOAL GIANT PROVIDED SECRET FINANCING TO GROUP CHALLENGING CLIMATE LAWSUITS,โThe Intercept, December 17, 2019. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/hUjRt
- 20Scott Waldman. โMurray Energy a major funder of climate denial groups,โ E&E News, December 17, 2019. Archived December 20, 2019. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/wip/WrDuT
- 21Lisa Friedman. โA Coal Baron Funded Climate Denial as His Company Spiraled Into Bankruptcy,โ The New York Times, December 17, 2019. Archived December 20, 2019. Archive.ph URL: https://archive.ph/ujTS6
- 22Tik Root, Lisa Friedman, and Hiroko Tabuchi. โFollowing the Money That Undermines Climate Science,โ The New York Times, July 10, 2019. Archived July 10, 2019. Archive.fo URL:https://archive.fo/8G1po
- 23โCEI 35th Anniversary Dinner and Receiptionโ (PDF), CEI, July 8, 2019 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 24Tik Root, Lisa Friedman, and Hiroko Tabuchi. โFollowing the Money That Undermines Climate Science,โ The New York Times, July 10, 2019. Archived July 10, 2019. Archive.fo URL:https://archive.fo/8G1po
- 25โCEI 35th Anniversary Dinner and Receiptionโ (PDF), CEI, July 8, 2019 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 26Juliet Eilperin. โAnatomy of a Washington dinner: Who funds the Competitive Enterprise Institute?โ The Washington Post, June 20, 2013. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/CZoH2
- 27โCompetitive Enterprise Institute’s Myron Ebell: ‘I’d Like To See A Lot More Funding’ From Big Coal,โ Media Matters, August 5, 2015. Archived November 10, 2016. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/NrMh4
- 28โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ Conservative Transparency. Data retrieved June 2, 2017.
- 29Richard Littlemore. โExxon Acknowledges Climate Change, cuts CEI’s funding,โ DeSmog, January 11, 2007.
- 30โSceptics forced to contain hot air on gases,โ The Australian, April 10, 2007. Archived September 2, 2013.
- 31Joel Achenbach. โThe Tempest,โ The Washington Post, May 28, 2006. Archived February 20, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/9bwde
- 32Juliet Eilperin. โAnatomy of a Washington dinner: Who funds the Competitive Enterprise Institute?โ The Washington Post, June 20, 2013. Archived February 20, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/O2ssB
- 33ExxonSecrets Factsheet: Competitive Enterprise Institute, CEI. Data retrieved August, 2016. Most recent data on file at DeSmog.
- 34โCompetitive Enterprise Institute (CEI): Koch Industries Climate Denial Front Group,โ Greenpeace USA. Archived March 14, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/3STLm
- 35โCompetitive Enterprise Institute (CEI): Koch Industries Climate Denial Front Group,โ Greenpeace USA. Archived March 14, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/3STLm
- 36โDear Maura,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, October 16, 2000. Retrieved from Tobacco Industry Documents. Bates Number : 525291068-525291069.
- 37โDear Tom,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, October 11, 1994. Retrieved from Truth Tobacco Industry Documents. Bates No. 2046558061.
- 38โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ Capital Research Center. Archived July 2, 2003. https://archive.ph/KDxLB
- 39COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INST,SMITH,FL JR. COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE. 1994 March. Philip Morris. Retrieved from UCSF Industry Documents Library. Bates No. 2046558
- 40“A Thorn With a Smile” (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, April 25, 2016. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 41“Kent Lassman,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/s1D1Z
- 42“Kent Lassman,” DCI Group. Archived November 3, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/yODK4
- 43Connor D. Wolf. “CEIโs Kent Lassman: Meeting Policy With People,” InsideSources. August 9, 2017. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/kH7px
- 44“A Thorn With a Smile” (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, April 25, 2016.
- 45“Kent Lassman,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/s1D1Z
- 46“Gibbons spurns lobbying to seek medical research investments,” Politico, March 22, 2016. Archived January 30, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/MtXeC
- 47(Press Release). “New coalition urges Congress to investigate risks of net-zero energy actions,” CFACT, February 24, 2023. Archived October 2, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YJQEg
- 48(Press Release). “New coalition urges Congress to investigate risks of net-zero energy actions,” CFACT, February 24, 2023. Archived October 2, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YJQEg
- 49(Press Release). “New coalition urges Congress to investigate risks of net-zero energy actions,” CFACT, February 24, 2023. Archived October 2, 2023. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/YJQEg
- 50“BRIEF OF AMICUS CURIAE THE COMPETITIVE ENTERPRISE INSTITUTE IN SUPPORT OF PETITIONERS in STATE OF WEST VIRGINIA, ET AL., Petitioners, v. U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY AND MICHAEL REGAN, ADMINISTRATOR OF THE U.S. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AGENCY, Respondents,” Supreme Court of the United States docket nos. 20-1530, 20-1531, 20-1778, 20-1780
- 51“Provisional list of registered participants” (PDF), UNFCCC, November 1, 2021. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 52Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
- 53Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
- 54Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
- 55Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
- 56Jack Elbaum. “A Civilian Climate Corps Cannot Address a Climate Emergency,” Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 23, 2021. Archived August 23, 2021. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/iDBzC
- 57Timothy Cama. “Group hires conservative writer to examine green movement,” E&E News, May 12, 2021. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 58CAFE-Coaliton-to-Trump-April-2020-9 (PDF), American Energy Alliance.
- 59CAFE-Coaliton-to-Trump-April-2020-9 (PDF), American Energy Alliance.
- 60Dana Drugmand. โUnder Cover of Pandemic, Fossil Fuel Interests Unleash Lobbying Frenzy,โ DeSmog, April 2, 2020.
- 61Coronavirus Stimulus Letter, Life:Powered, March 23, 2020. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 62Coronavirus Stimulus Letter, Life:Powered, March 23, 2020. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 63(Press Release). โCEI Files Formal Complaint Regarding NASA’s Claim of 97% Climate Scientist Agreement on Global Warming,โ CEI.org, July 10, 2019. Archived July 24, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/1N4GT. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 64(Press Release). โCEI Files Formal Complaint Regarding NASA’s Claim of 97% Climate Scientist Agreement on Global Warming,โ CEI.org, July 10, 2019. Archived July 24, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/1N4GT. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 65Kent Lassman, Daniel Turner. โWhat the Green New Deal Could Cost a Typical Household,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, July 30, 2019. Archived July 30, 2019. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/Sg62w. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 66Hiroko Tabuchi. โClimate Change Denialists Dubbed Auto Makers the โOppositionโ in Fight Over Trumpโs Emissions Rollback,โ The New York Times, July 2, 2019. Archived July 3, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Dr5mP
- 67Hiroko Tabuchi. โClimate Change Denialists Dubbed Auto Makers the โOppositionโ in Fight Over Trumpโs Emissions Rollback,โ The New York Times, July 2, 2019. Archived July 3, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Dr5mP
- 68Hiroko Tabuchi. โClimate Change Denialists Dubbed Auto Makers the โOppositionโ in Fight Over Trumpโs Emissions Rollback,โ The New York Times, July 2, 2019. Archived July 3, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Dr5mP
- 69โDear Senator Grassley, Senator Wyden, Representative Neal and Representative Brady:โ May 9, 2019. Retrieved from The Daily Caller. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/NXbZE
- 70Christ White. โCONSERVATIVES WARN LAWMAKERS: TESLAโS TAX CREDITS โOVERWHELMINGLY BENEFIT THE RICHโ,โThe Daily Caller, May 9, 2019. Archived May 9, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/qzvF3
- 71Christ White. โCONSERVATIVES WARN LAWMAKERS: TESLAโS TAX CREDITS โOVERWHELMINGLY BENEFIT THE RICHโ,โThe Daily Caller, May 9, 2019. Archived May 9, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/qzvF3
- 72Bob Shavelson. โTHE PEBBLE MINE & THE KOCHTOPUS,โ Inletkeeper, March 28, 2019. Archived April 1, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/MKHGP
- 73โRe: Request for Correction Number 19001 Pertaining to the Bristol Bay Watershed Assessmentโ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, March 20, 2019. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 74โRe: Pebble Limited Partnership Submission in Support of Information Quality Act Request for Correction by the Competitive Enterprise Institute (RFC 19001)โ (PDF), Steptoe & Johnson LLP. Retrieved from EPA.gov.
- 75โMeet the Press used to be the gold-standard for political debate. NOT ANYMORE.,โ NBCClimatedebate.cei.org. Archived January 25, 2019. Archive.fo URL: https://archive.fo/Ahd9d
- 76Amy Russo. โChuck Todd Refuses To Give Air Time To Climate Deniers: ‘The Science Is Settled’,โ HuffPost, December 31, 2018.
- 77โCEI Ad: Chuck Todd & NBC’s Meet the Press: Stop Denying the Real Climate Debate,โ YouTube video uploaded by user โCompetitive Enterprise Institute,โ January 18, 2019. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
- 78Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Archived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
- 79Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Archived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
- 80chived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
- 81Tim Pearce. โEnergy Department Hit with FOIA Lawsuit Over Green Tax Credit Lobbying Campaign,โ The Daily Caller, December 11, 2018. Archived December 12, 2018. Archive.is URL: http://archive.is/6HueE
- 82Christopher C. Horner. “Law Enforcement for Rent: How Special Interests Fund Climate Policy through State Attorneys General” (PDF), CEI, July 27, 2018 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 83Christopher C. Horner. “Law Enforcement for Rent: How Special Interests Fund Climate Policy through State Attorneys General” (PDF), CEI, July 27, 2018 (document creation date). Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 84“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 85“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 86“FACTSHEET: Atlas Economic Research Foundation, Atlas; AERF,” ExxonSecrets.org. Archived June 28, 2017. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/4Iisq
- 87“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 88Mitchell Anderson. “The Cato Institute and Patrick Michaels โ It’s a Small World After All,” DeSmog, May 26, 2009.
- 89“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 90“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 91“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 92“CEI Board of Directors,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 13, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/2XsYu
- 93“Myron Ebell,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 23, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/P6GKR
- 94“Energy and Environment,” Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived January 29, 2018. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gKUHO
- 95โ41 Conservative Groups Support Scalise/McKinley Anti-Carbon Tax Resolution,โ Americans for Tax Reform, July 18, 2018. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 96โ41 Conservative Groups Support Scalise/McKinley Anti-Carbon Tax Resolution,โ Americans for Tax Reform, July 18, 2018. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 97Nick Sobczyk. โHouse voting on anti-carbon-tax measure: ‘Pass the popcorn’,โ E&E News, July 16, 2018. Archived Aug 2, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/aTP8h
- 98Nick Sobczyk. โHouse voting on anti-carbon-tax measure: ‘Pass the popcorn’,โ E&E News, July 16, 2018. Archived Aug 2, 2018. Archive.is URL: https://archive.fo/aTP8h
- 99โTeaching opportunities from House Concurrent Resolution 119 (H.Con.Res.119)โ (PDF), Citizens’ Climate Lobby, April 30, 2018.
- 100โDear Mr. Presidentโ (PDF), Institute for Energy Research, May 10, 2018. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 101Ben Jervey. โOn Rollbacks, Automakers Tell Trump ‘Not So Fast,’ Kochs Say ‘Burn More Gas’,โDeSmog, May 14, 2018.
- 102Kent Lassma. โPresident’s Fall Policy Update,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, December 12, 2017. Archived December 28, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/eohIy
- 103โCEI Sues State Department for Paris Climate Treaty Docs,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, October 3, 2017. Archived October 6, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/8QAwz
- 104โParis Climate Treaty TV Ad: Mr. President, Keep your Promise,โ YouTube video uploaded by user Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2017. Archived .mp4 on file at DeSmog.
- 105Sharon Kelly. โTrump Abandons Paris Climate Deal At Bidding of Fossil Fuel Interests,โ DeSmog, June 1, 2017.
- 106โThe man behind the decision to pull out of the Paris agreement,โ CNN, June 3, 2017. Archived June 5, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/G82Jt
- 107โDear Mr. Presidentโ (PDF), retrieved from Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 108Graham Readfearn. โConservative Groups Pushing Trump To Exit Paris Climate Deal Have Taken Millions From Koch Brothers, Exxon,โ DeSmog, May 10, 2017.
- 109Susanne Goldberg. โConservative groups spend up to $1bn a year to fight action on climate change,โ The Guardian, December 20, 2013. Archived May 12, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/TB2yy
- 110โPetition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Science and Environmental Policy Project for Rulemaking on the Subject of Greenhouse Gases and Their Impact on Public Health and Welfare, in Connection with EPAโs 2009 Endangerment Finding, 74 FR 66,496 (Dec. 15, 2009)โ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, February 17, 2017.
- 111โPetition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Science and Environmental Policy Project for Rulemaking on the Subject of Greenhouse Gases and Their Impact on Public Health and Welfare, in Connection with EPAโs 2009 Endangerment Finding, 74 FR 66,496 (Dec. 15, 2009)โ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, February 17, 2017.
- 112โPetition of the Competitive Enterprise Institute and the Science and Environmental Policy Project for Rulemaking on the Subject of Greenhouse Gases and Their Impact on Public Health and Welfare, in Connection with EPAโs 2009 Endangerment Finding, 74 FR 66,496 (Dec. 15, 2009)โ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute, February 17, 2017.
- 113Michael Bastasch. โEXCLUSIVE: EPA Asked To Invalidate A Pillar Of Obamaโs Climate Agenda,โ The Daily Caller, April 10, 2010. Archived November 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mDuqB
- 114Michael Bastasch. โEXCLUSIVE: EPA Asked To Invalidate A Pillar Of Obamaโs Climate Agenda,โ The Daily Caller, April 10, 2010. Archived November 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/mDuqB
- 115โEnvironmental Groups Ask EPA to Rescind Obamaโs โEndangerment Findingโ,โ Breitbart, April 11, 2017. Archived November 13, 2017. Archive.is URL: https://archive.is/JSLKd
- 116Jim Lakely. โ#WebOfDenial Push by Senate Dems Exposes Their Hatred of Free Speech,โ Somewhat Reasonable (Heartland Institute Blog), July 12, 2016. Archived July 14, 2016.
- 117Cindy Baxter. โFront Groups Attacking #WebofDenial Senate Action Took Over $92M in Dark, Dirty Money,โ DeSmog, July 14, 2016. Originally posted at Climate Investigations Center.
- 118Brendan Demelle. โSenators Launch Resolution, Speech Blitz Calling Out #WebOfDenial Blocking Climate Action,โ DeSmog, July 11, 2016.
- 119“Coalition Letter to Senate Web of Denial Resolution” (PDF). Retrieved from the Heartland Institute. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 120Brett Healy. โMacIver Stands With Competitive Enterprise Institute In Battle Over Free Speech,โ MacIver Institute, June 6, 2016. Archived June 23, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Lqjyq
- 121โDear Kentโ (PDF), June, 2016. Retrieved from http://www.maciverinstitute.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 122โDear Kentโ (PDF), June, 2016. Retrieved from http://www.maciverinstitute.com. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 123โCEI Runs โAbuse of Powerโ Ad In New York Times,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2016. Archived May 31, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DF7gW
- 124โAbuse of Power: All Americans have the right to support causes they believe inโ (PDF), Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived .pdf on file at DeSmog.
- 125โCEI Runs โAbuse of Powerโ Ad In New York Times,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2016. Archived May 31, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DF7gW
- 126โCEI Runs โAbuse of Powerโ Ad In New York Times,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, May 18, 2016. Archived May 31, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/DF7gW
- 127Steve Horn. โExxon’s Lawyer in Climate Science Probe Has History Helping Big Tobacco and NFL Defend Against Health Claims,โ DeSmog, May 10, 2016.
- 128Kert Davies. “Competitive Enterprise Institute NYT Ad Signatories Got $10 Million from Exxon,” Climate Investigations Center, May 19, 2016. Archived January 29, 2025. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/XVty8
- 129Marc Morano. โMIT Climate Scientist Dr. Richard Lindzen Mocks 97% Consensus: ‘It is propaganda’,โ Climate Depot, February 15, 2016. Archived March 15,2 016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/tRFbd
- 130Sarah Sloat. โClimate Change-Denying MIT Prof. Richard Lindzen Is Suddenly Popular, Still Wrong,โ Inverse, February 17, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Qwpq3
- 131โCompetitive Enterprise Institute’s Myron Ebell: โIโd Like To See A Lot More Fundingโ From Big Coal,โ Media Matters, August 5, 2015. Archived August 11, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/skjit
- 132โSponsors,โ ICCC10. Archived July 15, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Uyj2K
- 133โLawson Bader ‘Gavel Out! Legal Opportunities to Push Back Regulatory Overreach’,โ Freedom Fest, July 10, 2015. Archived June 22, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/p8d0q
- 134โPANEL Think Tanks Make a Difference!โ FreedomFest, July 11, 2015. Archived June 22, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/raS07
- 135โWhy Is Big Pharma Financing a Conservative Group Trying to Destroy Obamacare?โMother Jones, February 18, 2015. Archived June 21, 2016. WebCiteURL: http://www.webcitation.org/6iSjGF31Q
- 136โLibertarians Sue White House Over Climate Change Video,โ ThinkProgress, October 30, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Uiss6
- 137Marlo Lewis. โSpeakers,โ At the Crossroads; Energy & Climate Policy Summit, Texas Public Policy Foundation, The Heritage Foundation, September 25, 2014. Archived October 3, 2014. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/GUScV
- 138โICCC9 CoSponsors,โ International Conferences on Climate Change (The Heartland Institute). Archived July 27, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/gclHF
- 139Lawson Bader. โCEI Sues the NSA,โ Human Events, June 16, 2014. Archived June 22, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/ri1gT
- 140โCosponsors,โ 7th International Conference on Climate Change. Archived May 10, 2012. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/VAY3r
- 141“Sixth International Conference on Climate Change Conference Program” (PDF), The Heartland Institute. Archived July 25, 2015.
- 142“Geoffrey Pohanka on the Global Warming Debate,” Vimeo video uploaded by user “CEI Video”, July 16, 2010 (according to metadata). Archived August 24, 2010. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/5NrLK
- 143“Geoffrey Pohanka on the Global Warming Debate,” Vimeo video uploaded by user “CEI Video”, July 16, 2010 (according to metadata). Archived August 24, 2010. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/5NrLK
- 144“4th International Conference on Climate Change Conference Program” (PDF), The Heartland Institute.
- 145โCo-Sponsors,โ Third International Conference on Climate Change. Archived July 14, 2010. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/7M3LQ
- 146โCo-Sponsors,โ The 2009 International Conference on Climate Change. Archived April 28, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/8pEf7
- 147Kevin Grandia. โCEI Struggles to Remain Relevant, Bashes Gore,โ DeSmog, March 12, 2008.
- 148โCEI Launches National Ad Campaign on the Impact of Al Goreโs Global Warming Policies,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute, March 11, 2008. Archived July 30, 2015. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/hGdAl
- 149โSponsorships,โ The 2008 International Conference on climate Change. Archived June 10, 2011. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/bxDic
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- 161โAbout,โ Competitive Enterprise Institute. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/IpJWA
- 162โAbout,โ GlobalWarming.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/nLWnM
- 163โAbout,โ SAFEChemicalPolicy.org. Archived March 15, 2016. Archive URL: https://archive.ph/Lsqzn