Sen. Cornyn Raises Concerns With NEA Efforts To Steer Arts Community To Produce Pro-Obama Artwork
WASHINGTONU.S. Sen. John Cornyn R-Texas a member of Senate Republican Leadership has written to President Obama raising concerns with a recent conference call hosted by the White House the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) and United We Serve that allegedly encouraged a select group of artists to produce artwork that promotes the Presidents political agendaspecifically with regard to health care reform and cap-and-trade legislation.
Sen. Cornyn writes: A reasonable observer would view the NEAs participation in the August 10 call as implying that NEA grant opportunities (i.e. taxpayer dollars) may be tied to artists willingness to use their creative talents to advance your Administrations political agenda. This is not and has never been the purpose of the NEA.
Such politicization of the NEA is particularly dangerous at a time when the arts community struggles for philanthropy. But even if no NEA funding was intended for political purposes one cannot escape the disturbing impression that this Administrationincluding appointees within the White House and the NEAbelieves that it is appropriate for the federal government to enlist the arts community for the purpose of furthering a specific political agenda. I agree with President John F. Kennedy who said that we must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth."
The full text of Sen. Cornyns letter to the President is below.
Dear President Obama:
A recent blog post by Los Angeles-based artist Patrick Courrielche details an August 10 2009 conference call hosted by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) the White House Office of Public Engagement and United We Serve. The stated purpose of the call was to encourage a select group of artists to help lay a new foundation for growth focusing on core areas of the recovery agenda health care energy and environment safety and security education community renewal." According to Mr. Courrielche the NEA and the White House were steering the art community toward creating art on the very issues that are currently under contentious national debate; those being health care reform and cap-and-trade legislation." See
http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/pcourrielche/2009/08/25/the-national-endowment-for-the-art-of-persuasion-patrick-courrielche/.
If accurate Mr. Courrielches account of this conference call organized and hosted by your Administration raises a number of serious concerns. First and foremost among these concerns is the participation of the NEA in a conversation steering" the arts community toward a pro-Administration political message.
As you know the NEA is the largest annual funder of the arts in the United States. And the imprimatur of an NEA grant often spurs private funding making NEA grant decisions even more powerful within the arts community. But as former NEA Chairman Dana Gioia wrote in 2007 the NEA does not dictate arts policy to the United States . . . ." Indeed as Gioia observes this feature is what distinguishes the NEA from other nations centralized ministries of culture.
A reasonable observer would view the NEAs participation in the August 10 call as implying that NEA grant opportunities (i.e. taxpayer dollars) may be tied to artists willingness to use their creative talents to advance your Administrations political agenda. This is not and has never been the purpose of the NEA.
Such politicization of the NEA is particularly dangerous at a time when the arts community struggles for philanthropy. But even if no NEA funding was intended for political purposes one cannot escape the disturbing impression that this Administrationincluding appointees within the White House and the NEAbelieves that it is appropriate for the federal government to enlist the arts community for the purpose of furthering a specific political agenda. I agree with President John F. Kennedy who said that we must never forget that art is not a form of propaganda; it is a form of truth."
I urge you to make clear that your Administration will never allocate taxpayer dollars to artists based on their support for Administration policy initiatives. Further I respectfully request that you take the necessary steps to ensure that the NEAand the American arts community it supportsremain independent from political manipulation by the White House.
This episode appears to merit congressional hearings and sustained oversightand so I request your prompt response to these charges and my concerns.
Sincerely
JOHN CORNYN
