CPAC embraced Trump but did not invite gay Republicans, with their GOProud organisation reduced to a single speaker on a single panel invited along by the Competitive Enterprise Institute. "We are taking tolerance out of the closet," boasted institute director Fred Smith, which raised the question of why it was there in the first place.
Fred Smith is the animating spirit at the Competitive Enterprise Institute. Fred conceived of the idea for an organization that would, in his words, “find a more positive answer to the challenge Joseph Schumpeter laid down in his essay, “Can Capitalism Survive?” He founded the organization and served as president for nearly three decades.
He died at the age of 83 at home in Maryland where he is survived by his beloved wife Fran. Fred was a friend and mentor, an advocate and ally, and an inspiration. His bright light lives on in our work.
Fred Lee Smith
December 26, 1940 – November 23, 2024