At least three policy analysts at the Center for American Progress (CAP) are employed at an international consulting firm that has undisclosed foreign clients, posing a significant conflict-of-interest risk for the think tank, according to ethics experts.
CAP senior fellows Brian Katulis, Richard Verma, and Carol Browner all hold positions at the Albright Stonebridge Group (ASG), a prominent Washington-based strategy firm led by former Secretary of State Madeleine Albright. Verma is also senior counselor at lobbying firm Steptoe & Johnson, LLP, although he has not been registered to lobby since 2008.
ASG does not disclose its clients. According to its website, it "helps corporations, associations, and non-profit organizations around the world meet their core objectives in a highly competitive, complex, and ever-changing marketplace," and has worked in 65 countries on six continents.
Katulis’ CAP research focuses on national security issues. Since August, he has produced reports on U.S. policy in Egypt, Iranian nuclear negotiations, U.S.-Saudi relations, and the conflict in Syria.
At ASG, Katulis serves as a senior adviser and assists "clients with issues related to the Middle East and South Asia," according to the firm’s website.
While Katulis’ CAP biography notes that he "has served as a consultant to numerous U.S. government agencies, private corporations, and nongovernmental organizations," it does not mention his current role at ASG.
At CAP, Verma "provides strategic advice and works with the National Security and International Policy team," according to the think tank’s website. He is also a counselor at ASG, where he is a "leader of the ASG India and South Asia practice and supports the firm’s global trade, regulatory, and policy capabilities," according to its website.
Browner is a senior distinguished fellow at CAP where she has focused on environmental issues. As a senior counselor at ASG, Browner also provides "strategic counsel to clients" on environmental issues, according to the website.
Both Verma and Browner disclose their positions at ASG in their CAP biographies. Unlike Katulis, they do not appear to be actively producing research. Browner’s last piece published on the site is a Bloomberg column about Arctic drilling from last January. Verma’s is a CAP paper about the U.S.-India relationship published in October 2012.
A spokesperson for ASG said he could not discuss the details of Katulis’, Verma’s, and Browner’s positions or clients, other than to confirm they work for the firm.
"They do have a professional role they play with the firm," ASG spokesman Ben Chang said. "But I’m not going to go into the kind of client work they do, or the nature of their contractual [arrangements]."
Marie Newhouse, a fellow at the Edmond J. Safra Center for Ethics at Harvard University, said there is "unavoidable" bias when think tank analysts work for clients with ties to their research.
"It's surprising to me that think tankers ever consult on the side for companies that have a direct interest in their think tank research," said Newhouse. "Because unconscious bias is unavoidable, think tank analysts owe it to the consumers of their research to disclose conflicts of interest."
Newhouse said that "at a minimum" think tank analysts need to disclose any private clients that might present a conflict of interest.
"A think tank can adopt one of two policies. It can require disclosure of conflicts or it can ban the conflicts entirely," Newhouse said. "The answer will depend on how the think tank sees its mission. A think tank that is deeply committed to high quality research may prefer to ban clear financial conflicts such as industry consulting gigs, because those conflicts will unavoidably bias research."
"At a minimum, think tanks owe it to those who read their work to disclose conflicts of interest that would lead any reasonable person to believe that the research could be impacted by the conflict. Conflicts don't make research useless, but they can reduce its likely value to readers."
Other institutions have disclosure policies aimed at reducing conflicts of interest. The Brookings Institute, a Washington-based think tank, requires fellows to annually disclose outside interests that might influence their research. Several Brookings senior fellows, including Kenneth Pollack and Martin Baily, also have positions at ASG.
CAP, Katulis, Verma and Browner did not respond to questions about what disclosure policies, if any, are in place at CAP.
CAP recently launched an effort to increase its transparency, after its founder, John Podesta, accepted a job in the White House. The think tank published a list of its corporate donors, which included ASG.