Five Washington Times Op-Ed Writers Who Weren't Disclosed As Romney Advisers

The Washington Times has published op-ed pieces from five advisers to Mitt Romney's presidential campaign without disclosing their political ties.

According to a Media Matters review, the Times did not disclose the campaign ties for the following members of the Romney team: Ken Allard, John Bolton, Mary Ann Glendon, Kim Holmes, and Robert Joseph. In total, the Times published at least 14 op-eds from these writers that were critical of President Obama and his administration's policies or supportive of Romney while they were serving on the Romney campaign.

In its straight news section, however, the Times has reported that three of those advisers -- Joseph, Bolton, and Glendon -- were working on Romney's behalf.

Media Matters previously found that the Wall Street Journal had published op-eds from nine writers without disclosing their roles as advisers to the Romney campaign.

Col. Ken Allard

Ken Allard

Role with Romney campaign: National Advisory Board member of Veterans and Military Families for Romney Coalition. [MittRomney.com, 7/24/12]

Times non-disclosure: Two op-eds.

  •  A  September 7 op-ed criticized the Obama administration for having “done nothing to uncover, prosecute and purge the leakers among its own ranks” in light of the publication of “No Easy Day,” a memoir by a former Navy SEAL involved in the raid against Osama bin Laden.
  • A September 12 op-ed criticized the administration's policies in the Middle East, especially in reaction to the Arab Spring and recent events surrounding the killing of U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens.

 In both editorials, the Times identified Allard as retired from the Army, a former NBC News military analyst and author on national security issues.

John Bolton

Role with Romney campaign: Foreign policy adviser. [MittRomney.com, 3/27/12]

The Washington Times reported in a January 18 article about Romney's “national security advisers” that Bolton “signed on earlier this month.” A July 11 article discussing Romney's potential secretary of state discussed Bolton and added that he's “on the campaign's advisory team and is probably its most outspoken and prolific op-ed writer.” 

Times non-disclosure: Three op-eds.

  • A February 22 op-ed slammed Obama's tactics with Iran: “Mr. Obama could well be remembered in history as the president asleep in the wheelhouse when Iran actually achieved both nuclear weapons and a fully indigenous nuclear fuel cycle.”
  • A June 4 op-ed wrote of Obama and Iran: “Having learned nothing from 10 years of futile negotiations with Iran, President Obama seemed perilously close late last month to yet another deal purportedly making 'progress' eliminating the ayatollahs' nuclear weapons program.”
  • An August 21 op-ed criticized Obama for creating “the most antagonistic relationship ever between Israel and the White House.”

The Times described Bolton as a “former U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, is a senior fellow at the American Enterprise Institute and author of 'Surrender Is Not an Option: Defending America at the United Nations and Abroad.' ”

Mary Ann Glendon

Role with Romney campaign: Co-chair of Romney's Justice Advisory Committee. [MittRomney.com, 8/2/11]; National co-chair, Catholics for Romney. [7/31/12]

The Times reported on January 12 that Glendon is supporting Romney's campaign. On August 2, the Times also reported that Glendon is serving as a national co-chair of Catholics For Romney.

Times non-disclosure: One op-ed.

In a July 30 piece, Glendon applauded Romney for visiting Poland during his summer trip abroad, which she wrote “provides assurance that the first of freedoms will not be relegated to the sidelines in the foreign or domestic policy of a Romney administration.” She praised Romney as having a “staunch commitment to religious liberty.”

The Times identified Glendon as a Learned Hand Professor of Law at Harvard Law School and the U.S. ambassador to the Holy See in 2008-09.
 

Kim Holmes

Role with Romney campaign: Foreign policy adviser and national security adviser. [MittRomney.com, 10/6/11]

Times non-disclosure: Seven op-eds.

  • A November 16, 2011, op-ed claimed that “many in Washington seem to think that President Obama's foreign policies have been his greatest success. They mistakenly think killing Osama bin Laden and other high-profile terrorists is tantamount to winning the war against his terrorists. They cheer Mr. Obama's popularity overseas as proof of his success even though some of it reflects delight in his weakening of American power.” 
  • A January 11 op-ed criticized Obama's national defense strategy as “a budget exercise masquerading as a strategic plan.” 
  • A February 8 op-ed questioned Obama's decision to accelerate the withdrawal of troops from Afghanistan, and asked, “What if the country again becomes a safe haven for terrorists?”
  • A February 22 op-ed asked: “Has the Obama administration done things that unnecessarily constrain the options and make resolution of the crisis more difficult? The answer is 'yes'....”. 
  • A March 21 op-ed questioned the Obama administration advocating use of force in Libya but not Syria.
  • An April 4 op-ed  criticized the Obama administration's foreign policy toward Asia. Holmes claimed that “the Obama administration took far too long to approve the free-trade agreement (FTA) with South Asia.”
  • A May 16 op-ed claimed that “President Obama's ”stimulus" program failed to grow the American economy out of the recession." 

In all of these pieces, the Washington Times identified Holmes as a former assistant secretary of state and vice president at the Heritage Foundation.

Robert Joseph

Role with Romney campaign: Foreign policy adviser and national security adviser; Co-chair, counter-proliferation working group. [MittRomney.com, 10/6/11]

In a January 18 article, the Times reported on Joseph's involvement in the Romney campaign.

Non-Disclosure: One op-ed.

In a June 12 op-ed titled “Obama chooses vulnerability,” Joseph attacked Obama for pursuing a nuclear zero agenda. Joseph claimed that “the policies and programs of the Obama administration have undermined have undermined progress in protecting our nation against emerging threats, such as those from Iran and North Korea. For the administration, vulnerability is a choice, part of its feckless pursuit of the nuclear zero agenda and its failed promotion of reset with Russia.”

The Times identified Joseph as a special assistant to President George W. Bush and former undersecretary of state for arms control and international security.

Note: Media Matters checked the Times' identifications of the op-ed writers through its website and Lexis Nexis.