Students of the local media and political scene have likely noticed the emergence of a new think tank, the San Diego Institute for Policy Research. It’s drawn both attention and suspicion because of its founder: health care executive and former Republican mayoral candidate Steve Francis.
The institute has pledged to be nonpartisan. Here’s one description offered:
The San Diego Institute for Policy Research (SDI) was established as a non-partisan organization whose goal is to improve the efficiency and effectiveness of the public sector throughout San Diego County.
But the organization’s first visitor to its inaugural speakers forum won’t do much to calm the suspicious. It’s Dinesh D’Souza, author of “The Enemy at Home: The Cultural Left and Its Responsibility for 9/11.”
From an invite on the Republican Party of San Diego County’s website:
Join us as Dinesh D’Souza details why 9/11 occurred and how America’s liberal culutre (sic) angers traditional and religious societies. Then, hear how we can truly win the war for the hearts and minds of traditional Muslims.