Cato Institute, Washington, DC
I spent the summer of 2019 interning with the Cato Institute, a non-profit non-partisan think tank dedicated to promoting “the principles of individual liberty, free markets, limited government, and peace.” As an intern in the Defense and Foreign Policy Department, a place that aligns perfectly with my academic focuses on history, political science, and international relations, I worked with scholars on projects related to both my core interests in the post-Soviet world and the Middle East and to the security situation in South and East Asia.
My work included creating research reports, editing articles, creating annotated bibliographies, tracking past Cato publications, analyzing data sets, briefing scholars before their lectures and conferences, and assisting with the organization of Cato events. Each week allowed me to contribute to a new and interesting project; for example, I created a detailed timeline of the Saudi-Qatar crisis, researched corruption in the African and Latin-American development banks, created a summary of U.S. weapons sales to Taiwan and their global security import, tracked public opinion of Vladimir Putin in the post-Soviet states over the past twenty years, summarized past Cato commentary on foreign relations with Iran, and edited an article on the development of Afghanistan as a “trauma state.”
The scholar whom I did the most work with was Eric Gomez, a policy analyst who focuses on nuclear issues and, more specifically, U.S. military strategy in East Asia. Mr. Gomez is currently writing a paper on the continued development of India’s nuclear program and how India fits into Asia’s security complex. One of my long-term projects was doing the initial research for this paper, creating a detailed annotated bibliography of books and papers that discussed such topics as the development of the Cold Start doctrine, how the fundamental works of Kenneth Waltz and Hans Morgenthau can be applied to Indian nuclear policy, India’s push to design and construct weapons indigenously, challenges concerning Delhi’s recent purchase of Russian missiles, and the potentially destabilizing effect on China’s One Belt One Road Initiative on Asian nuclear relations. Other research completed for Mr. Gomez was centered on the history of U.S. Missile Defense Agency funding, the logic and import of the Trump administration’s missile defense initiatives, and the annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian military exercises with South Korea.
The most valuable component of my Cato experience, however, involved not the projects I completed but the education I received. Part of a summer internship at Cato is an intensive series of academic seminars intended to provide interns with a firm fundamental understanding of both the intellectual basis of libertarianism and the practical ways which libertarian ideas can be applied to current issues. Thus each week included at least three one to two-hour seminars with prominent Cato scholars such as David Boaz (one of the founders of modern libertarianism), Andrei Ilarionov (senior economics adviser to Vladimir Putin from 2000-2005), Doug Bandow (a former special assistant to President Reagan), Tom Palmer, and Peter VanDoren. In addition to allowing me to directly converse with some of America’s leading scholars, these seminars taught me critical thinking skills that I will use for the rest of my life.
Two of the reasons why Cato is a truly special institution is that it promotes open cross-party political discourse and holds freedom of speech to be sacrosanct. Proof of this can be found in the make-up of the intern class, which was relatively split between Democrats and Republicans and stretched across the political spectrum from self-proclaimed far-left socialists to far-right conservatives. Cato helps to shape politically engaged individuals that have a profound knowledge of and belief in their fundamental rights, value the individual liberty that lies at the heart of the “American Dream,” and, perhaps most importantly, have the actionable tools to defend their opinions and influence the policy areas that they are passionate about. Over the course of the summer, all interns received an education in succinct and persuasive writing, public speaking, and debating. We wrote op-eds, which were then reviewed and judged by Cato’s senior editors, crafted and gave sample speeches which we received detailed feedback on, and underwent debate training in preparation for the annual Libertarianism vs. Conservativism debate between Cato and Heritage Foundation interns.
Far from the typical 9-5 “desk internship,” my Cato summer also involved attending a plethora of events around the Washington, DC area. I attended several conferences, lectures, and networking functions at each of the Heritage Foundation, the U.S. Institute for Peace, the Atlantic Council, and the American Enterprise Institute. In addition, I had the opportunity to go to several Hill briefings. One major highlight was seeing Moldovan Prime Minister Pavel Filip, along with his Minister of Foreign Affairs, Minister of Defense, and Minister of Economics and Infrastructure, speak at the U.S. Institute of Peace. Moldovan issues are dear to my heart because of my several visits to the country, my friendships with some of its amazing people, and my interest in post-Soviet politics alike. Thus I cherished the opportunity to chat with Filip and his Cabinet after the lecture and ultimately write a briefing on the most salient challenges facing their country this summer. Other stand-out events included a Marco Rubio talk on “deep fake” technology, a conference on Eastern European energy security, and a bipartisan discussion on how anti-poaching and anti-terrorism efforts intersect.
My Cato summer was truly tripartite: professional, educational, and experiential. As I go back to Williams for senior year, all three components will play a valuable role vis-a-vis both my immediate success as a student and my construction of a path for post-graduation life. I will apply the ideas and critical thinking skills learned in seminars to my day-to-day assignments as a William student, use my policy research to inform my work in political science and international relations classes, and consider my experiences at varying DC think tanks and events as I consider my options after leaving the Purple Valley.
I am unlikely to begin a career at a think tank; my current plan is to begin law school in 2019, complete my formal education by the time I turn 25, and then transition to a life in international corporate law that would see me working both at home and abroad. However, I greatly enjoyed my work this summer and gained a tremendous respect for and understanding of think tanks, their influence in the political world, the machinations of U.S. foreign policy, and “the rules” of the DC political game. I now feel much better equipped to emerge from college into a political and “foreign affairs” life than I was three months ago; I am profoundly encouraged by the hard work and dedication I saw from everyone at Cato, am confident in my ability to succeed in Washington, and have re-affirmed my academic passions.
I would like to sincerely thank Dr. James D. Marver ’72, the Williams Alumni Network, and the Williams ’68 Center for Career Exploration for their generous grant in support of my summer internship. Without this grant, and the wonderful Williams community in general, my incredible summer at the Cato Institute would have been impossible and the valuable lessons I learned from it would have been squandered. I will remember and draw from my Cato experience for the rest of my life and will be forever grateful to Dr. Marver and Williams for facilitating it.