Eisenhower Memorial Controversy
Please see Susan's brother David Eisenhower's statement and her father John Eisenhower's letter on the matter.
Eisenhower’s granddaughters critical of Gehry’s design
On December 16, the following article appeared in the Washington Post outlining Susan and Anne Eisenhower’s opposition to the proposed design of the Eisenhower Memorial.
You can find the article in its entirety here.
The Eisenhower Institute of Gettysburg College recently sent four students to the United States Military Academy at West Point, where they participated in the 63rd annual Student Conference on Foreign Affairs (SCUSA) from November 2-5, 2011. Delegates to the SCUSA conference participated in roundtable sessions, attended panel discussions, and listened to keynote speakers on several different topics concerning U.S. foreign and military policy.
Since 1949, the U.S. Military Academy at West Point has hosted the SCUSA conference, the oldest, most distinguished student conference of its kind in the country. Each fall, SCUSA brings together approximately 200 undergraduate and 40 senior participants from throughout the United States and the world. The conference connects undergraduate students interested in foreign policy, and potentially, a career in foreign service, with the military, as students work with West Point cadet delegates, prominent academics, and policymakers from the highest levels of government to address current issues in foreign affairs.
Susan Eisenhower, Chairman of Leadership & Public Policy Programs at The Eisenhower Institute, was proud of the students’ attendance at the conference and remarked about its implications for Gettysburg students.
“I think the SCUSA conference at West Point was an exceptional opportunity for Gettysburg students to engage with West Point cadets and other students from around the world,” Eisenhower said. ”Today, American students – and the American public in general – are disconnected from the military, and there are grave consequences when you have that kind of separation. I believe programs like SCUSA help students connect with the military on a level that, unfortunately, is rare in today’s world.”
Susan Eisenhower on the proposed Gettysburg casino
50 years later: A reflection on the Farewell Address
- This article originally appeared in The Washington Post on January 16, 2011
I’ve always found it rather haunting to watch old footage of my grandfather, Dwight Eisenhower, giving his televised farewell address to the nation on Jan. 17, 1961. The 50-year-old film all but crackles with age as the president makes his earnest, uncoached speech. I was 9 years old at the time, and it wasn’t until years later that I understood the importance of his words or the lasting impact of his message.
Of course, the speech will forever be remembered for Eisenhower’s concerns about a rising “military-industrial complex,” which he described as “a permanent armaments industry of vast proportions” with the potential to acquire – whether sought or unsought – “unwarranted influence” in the halls of government.
The notion captured the imagination of scholars, politicians and veterans; the military-industrial complex has been studied, investigated and revisited countless times, including now, at its 50th anniversary. Looking back, it is easy to see the parallels to our era, especially how the complex has expanded since Sept. 11, 2001. In less than 10 years, our military and security expenditures have increa
sed by 119 percent. Even after subtracting the costs of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, the budget has grown by 68 percent since 2001. In 2010, the United States is projected to spend at least $700 billion on its defense and security, the most, in real terms, that we’ve spent in any year since World War II.
However, at this time of increased concerns over our fiscal deficit and the national debt, Eisenhower’s farewell words and legacy take on added significance. Read more…
Susan Eisenhower speaks at Newsweek energy forum
On Monday, June 14, 2010, Susan Eisenhower participated in Newsweek’s Executive Forum at the National Press Club. The forum, entitled “2010 Global Energy Connectivity: How Climate and Energy are Driving U.S. Policy and Perceptions,” was moderated by Newsweek Deputy Editor Rana Foroohar. Roxanne Decyk, executive vice president of group governmental relations for Shell, delivered opening remarks. Eisenhower, part of a five member panel, was joined by Senator Mark Warner of Virginia, Congressman Cliff Stearns of Florida, Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee of Texas, and Newsweek Contributing Editor Eleanor Clift.
The panel discussed a wide range of issues pertaining to energy policy in the United States, which has become especially relevant in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon oil disaster. The panelists discussed the pertinence of energy independence, the importance of diversification in the nation’s energy mix, and the need to better educate the American public about energy.
Eisenhower pointed out common public misconceptions about “clean coal,” the difference between energy produced for electricity and transportation, and mistaken beliefs about the safety of nuclear energy, which she fully promotes as a safe, carbon-free energy source vital to successful energy reform. Eisenhower also called for bipartisanship, saying,
“Bipartisanship is often a dirty word, but if there’s any issue in which bipartisanship is a must, it’s the energy field.”
Blue Ribbon Commission on America’s Nuclear Future
In the wake of President Obama’s decision to abandon Yucca Mountain, the site selected to serve as the nation’s spent nuclear fuel repository, the President directed Secretary of Energy Steven Chu to put together a Blue Ribbon Commission that would “conduct a comprehensive review of policies for managing the back end of the nuclear fuel cycle.” After many months of anticipation, a fifteen person panel was named. I have been asked to serve on the Commission which will meet for up to two years to review the safety and security considerations, as well as the science and technology options involved in crafting future policy. This is in keeping, said Secretary Chu, with the Obama Administration’s commitment to restarting the nuclear power industry in America– “to meet our country’s requirements for clean base-load electrical generation.” Commission co-chair, General Brent Scowcroft emphasized that the Commission will come with no preconceived ideas of what the prescription for fuel cycle management will be. Co-chair Rep. Lee Hamilton also reiterated this: “We will be prepared to look at all options and put together a plan based on the best of today’s science and technological developments.”
The Commission has a challenging and important assignment, the result of which could have lasting impact on our nation’s ability to fully utilize the potential of this carbon free source of energy. I am honored to join in this effort.
Susan Eisenhower has spent many years working on issues related to energy and nuclear power. For more information on her work in the nuclear area, click here.
Ms. Eisenhower’s Work on Nuclear Issues
Susan Eisenhower’s appointment to the Commission on America’s Nuclear Future will be the third time in as many administrations that she has served on Blue Ribbon Panels related to nuclear issues. In the spring of 2000, the Clinton Administration’s Secretary of Energy, Bill Richardson, appointed Ms. Eisenhower to the Baker-Cutler Commission to evaluate U.S. funded nuclear non-proliferation programs in Russia. In 2004, she was appointed by the Bush Administration’s Secretary of Energy, Spencer Abraham, to the Sununu-Meserve Commission, co-chaired by former New Hampshire Governor John Sununu and Carnegie Institution President and former Nuclear Regulatory Commission chairman Richard Meserve. Its influential final report, Moving Forward with Nuclear Power: Issues and Key Factors, provided many recommendations that were later adopted as national policy. In addition to these efforts, she has also served on a DOE funded study on terrorism and radiological dispersion devices (RDDs) or “dirty bombs.” At the end of last year, she also served on a DOE panel that produced recommendations on nuclear energy for incoming Secretary Chu.
Ms. Eisenhower has written on the subject of nuclear energy, convened working groups on it through the Eisenhower Strategy Form and has visited many sites that are part of the larger nuclear question. In 2004 she visited: Yucca Mountain, the Federal Spent Fuel Repository in Nevada, which is now no longer being funded; a major uranium enterprise in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan, where highly enriched uranium is blended down; and several nuclear facilities in France including La Hague, the French reprocessing facility. She has also visited a number of Russian nuclear reactors. Her work for the Baker-Cutler Commission also took her to Russia’s premier nuclear weapons facility, the Zababakhin Center in Snezhinsk (formally Chelyabinsk-70), a sensitive Russian defense site where nuclear weapons are designed and fissile materials are secured.
An experienced public speaker to expert audiences as well as general audiences, Ms. Eisenhower has addressed the issue of security and nuclear energy at many prestigious gatherings. These include keynote addresses at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in California; Sandia National Laboratories in New Mexico (The Distinguished Truman Lecture); and the National Academy of Sciences in Washington DC. She also gave the 2008 Rose Lecture at MIT and spoke during the General Assembly of the International Atomic Energy Agency in 2007. She has penned articles about the future of nuclear energy for such publications as the IAEA Bulletin and the National Academy of Science’s Issues in Science and Technology.
Susan Eisenhower served for three terms on the National Academy of Sciences standing committee on International Security and Arms Control. She is a founding Director of the Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) co-chaired by former Senator Sam Nunn and Ted Turner.
Reconsidering the Cold War
In November, Churchill Archives Centre in Cambridge, UK hosted a conference on “The Cold War and its Legacy”. The conference began with opening statements from Susan Eisenhower and the Deputy Russian Foreign Minister, His Excellency Grigoriy Karasin.
Click here to read more about this event and the work of the Churchill Archives Center.
The Eisenhower Memorial: Moving Forward
This post was originally published on February 8, 2012.
After some months of escalating controversy, many people’s good intentions have been distorted. The Eisenhower family looks forward to continuing to work with the Eisenhower Memorial Commissioners to resolve the issues that have been identified during this public debate. We will work constructively with stakeholders during these deliberations. We do not seek to dominate the process, but we will continue to clearly express our views.
General Eisenhower, 1947 (U.S. Army)
Despite our concerns about the current concept, which relies on a Kansas theme, we would like to reiterate that our ties to the state of Kansas have never been greater. My sister, Mary, lives in Missouri/Kansas and all family members of my generation sit on the Eisenhower Foundation board located in Abilene, Kansas — an unprecedented show of support from our family and an indication of our proud associations with Kansas and the region. We recognize and celebrate the impact our grandfather’s roots had on his life-long achievements.
The issue of a Washington memorial is far more complex, however. Memorials in Washington speak for the nation as a whole. This, then, is the mission: to find a fitting way to symbolize the importance of Dwight Eisenhower’s contribution to this country. As a “barefoot boy,” Eisenhower did not dream of fighting a war nor could he have imagined its unspeakable horror. By holding a fractious alliance together, his leadership as Supreme Commander of Allied Forces Europe, inspired and enabled the Allies to invade the coast of Normandy and fight on to victory, in the face of some of the most heinous crimes man has perpetrated on man.
During his presidency – through bipartisanship and fiscal responsibility – Eisenhower modernized America and its military capability to become the unrivaled leader of the free world and a beacon of hope for peoples everywhere.
This is the message we want to leave to future generations of Americans.