What is the National Endowment for Democracy (NED) and What Is Its Purpose?
The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) was established in 1983 during the Reagan administration.
It is a private, nonprofit foundation that receives nearly 100% of its annual funding from U.S. Congress appropriations. NED’s stated aim is to advance democracy worldwide and support democratic institutions.
Each year, it makes a large number of grants to non-governmental groups working for democratic goals in many countries.
NED was created as a response to restrictions placed on the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) in the late 1970s following various scandals.
Its founders publicly stated that it was created to avoid the perception of groups being subsidized by the CIA, a goal it achieves by operating as a quasi-private entity, which some sources claim shields it from certain disclosure requirements that apply to taxpayer-funded agencies.
Despite its non-governmental status, the U.S. Congress appropriates funds to the Endowment annually to fulfill its statutory mission.
Perspectives
Critics claim NED acts as a CIA front and undermines U.S. interests
The National Endowment for Democracy (NED) is considered a premier CIA cutout and a front group for the CIA to carry out foreign influence activities abroad that would be illegal domestically.
NED is accused of fomenting foreign policy actively opposed to that articulated by the elected President of the United States, including supporting initiatives like LGBTQI+ rights and feminist principles that some argue undermine U.S. corporate interests.
Critics allege that NED engages in censorship campaigns against conservative media in the U.S., with its funding strategies aimed at suppressing President Trump’s message and limiting advertising revenue for conservative websites.
President Trump has recommended zeroing out NED’s funding, and there have been efforts in the House to defund the organization due to concerns about it going “off its rails.”
NED supports democratic movements and is a crucial tool for U.S. foreign policy.
NED plays a crucial role in supporting democratic movements globally and has helped countries counter Russian destabilization, particularly in Central and Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans.
The Endowment has supported democracy activists on six continents and in 90 countries, making grants to non-governmental groups working for democratic goals.
Some argue that funding NED is a prudent investment because it is less expensive to aid friendly democrats than to defend against hostile dictatorships, and that cutting NED’s funding would be “penny-wise, pound-foolish.”
NED operates with a high degree of transparency and accountability, posting information about its grants and activities, and is subject to multiple layers of oversight by the U.S. Congress.
Both of the following videos are from his livestream with his X subscribers…
VIDEO 1: NED & The Censorship Complex: Case Study, Amb. Dan Fried
VIDEO 2: Blob Insanity: NED Board Director Rachel Kleinfeld
