Lee Edwards

Lee Edwards (born 1932 in Chicago, Illinois) is a distinguished fellow in conservative thought at the B. Kenneth Simon Center for American Studies at The Heritage Foundation. A historian of the conservative movement in America, and he has published more than 15 books, including biographies of President Ronald Reagan, Senator Barry Goldwater, Attorney General Edwin Meese III and William F. Buckley, Jr. He is currently the Chairman of the Victims of Communism Memorial Foundation.

Background

Edwards was born in Chicago in 1932. At an early age, he was introduced to conservative values and the importance of the written word by his parents; both of Edwards' parents were anti-communist, and his father was a journalist for the Chicago Tribune.

He holds a bachelor's degree in English from Duke University and a doctorate in world politics from Catholic University. He also did graduate work at the Sorbonne in Paris.

Career

Edwards' involvement in the conservative movement began in 1960. He was one of the founding members of Young Americans for Freedom (YAF), and later served as the director of information for the Barry Goldwater presidential campaign in 1964. In 1969, the New York Times dubbed Edwards “the voice of the silent majority.” He has acted as a consultant for the Richard Nixon administration, Senators Strom Thurmond and Bob Dole, the Republican National Committee, YAF, the American Conservative Union, the Committee for a Free China and the American Council for World Freedom.