The program is sponsored by Princeton’s Department of Politics, and claims to facilitate the exploration of American “constitutional principles and structures” through both research and discussion. The program provides fellowships for college and university professors, as well as other professionals, to join the program as Visiting Fellows. The program also hosts postdoctoral research associates, while undergraduates can join discussions by Madison Program Fellows and visitors by joining the Undergraduate Fellows Forum.
However, according to a 2023 article in The Daily Princetonian, a former member of the Undergraduate Fellows Forum shared that, while the Program markets itself as non-partisan, it actually exists to advance conservative viewpoints, even platforming far-right extremists and putting forward conspiracy theories. The students also note funding sources connected with right-wing and “anti-queer policies.” Among those who have been invited to Princeton from the James Madison Program are Ronen Shoval, the founder of an ultranationalist Israeli organization, and Stephen Wolfe, the author of “The Case for Christian Nationalism’’ – in which he argues that violence could be “morally permissible” for the creation of a Christian Nationalist state. They also note that among the program’s funders is Harlan Crow, who donated to Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and owns a collection of Nazi memorabilia, including a signed copy of Mein Kampf.
Finally, the James Madison Program has also been closely connected to the right-wing Witherspoon Institute, which supports far-right political objectives, including opposing same-sex marriage. In fact, the Witherspoon Institute, formed in 2003, also by George, is also said to have come out of conversations that took place at JMP. The JMP also receives support from the John M. Olin Foundation, which aims to create conservative cells within schools.
