Winner of Inaugural Tony Blankley Chair Announced

Steamboat Springs, CO – August 1, 2014 – The Steamboat Institute is proud to announce that Tom Rogan is the recipient of the inaugural “Tony Blankley Chair for Public Policy and American Exceptionalism.”  Mr. Rogan is a columnist for The National Review and The Daily Telegraph and is a TV/Radio Media Contributor, providing commentary on U.S. domestic politics/foreign policy to various media outlets, including Real Time with Bill Maher, Fox News, CNN, Newsmax TV, BBC News and many others.  He is an honors graduate of King’s College of London (War Studies) and a graduate of the law program at The College of Law, London.

“I’m deeply humbled to be the inaugural Tony Blankley fellow,” said Tom Rogan.  “Working with The Steamboat Institute, I will stand up for American exceptionalism, limited and effective government, and individual freedom.  As a young citizen, I believe these defining identities of the American spirit are crucial to our nation’s future,” continued Rogan.  “I will strive to honor Tony Blankley’s memory by promoting, in a warm but passionate spirit, the values for which he lived.”

Mr. Rogan will be a guest on The McLaughlin Group to air tonight (August 1st) on PBS.  The program is syndicated nationally and will be repeated throughout the weekend.  It airs on Rocky Mountain PBS at 8:30 p.m. (Mountain Time) tonight.  Please check local listings for your area.

The Tony Blankley Chair for Public Policy and American Exceptionalism was established by The Steamboat Institute to provide high-profile recognition and financial support to emerging conservative thought leaders who share the principles and ideals espoused by the late Tony Blankley and The Steamboat Institute.  Those principles are lower taxes, limited government, free market capitalism, individual rights and responsibilities, and strong national defense.

Selection Committee members for the Tony Blankley Chair include Newt Gingrich (58th Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives), Edwin Meese (75th Attorney General of the U.S.), Callista Gingrich (President of Gingrich Productions), Steve Hofman (Former U.S. Assistant Secretary of Labor), Lauren Maddox (Principal, Podesta Group), Tom McDevitt (Chairman of The Washington Times), John O’Sullivan (British commentator and former speechwriter for Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher), John Roberts (author and TV producer of The McLaughlin Group) and Amity Shlaes (author and Chairman of the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation).

Tony Blankley served as Conference Moderator for The Steamboat Institute’s first three Freedom Conferences (2009-2011).  The Steamboat Institute is a Colorado-based non-profit, non-partisan organization, whose mission is “to educate the public on the founding principles of the United States, and to inspire people to be actively involved in their implementation.”

“We are confident that Tom Rogan will be an exemplary representative of the Tony Blankley Chair and of The Steamboat Institute,” said Jennifer Schubert-Akin, Chairman and CEO of The Steamboat Institute.  “We are pleased to be presenting Mr. Rogan with this prestigious award at our Sixth Annual Freedom Conference in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, on August 22,” continued Schubert-Akin.

For more information on The Steamboat Institute, the Tony Blankley Chair and the Sixth Annual Freedom Conference, please visit steamboatinstitute.org.

August 1, 2014