According to The Washington Post, the aim of the officially nonpartisan Harry S. Truman Scholarship is "to pick out people with potential to become leaders—then provide support to help them realize their aspirations."
But since its creation 50 years ago, Matt Lamb of The College Fix says the Left has benefitted from it most.
"The Truman Scholarship program provides $30,000 to around 50 students a year to help them pay for graduate school," he explains. "Those recipients agree to spend three of the following seven years after graduation in some sort of public service."
In Lamb's words, "The program has turned into a subsidy program for liberal activists and liberal professors."
Between 2017 and 2018, for example, roughly 80% of Truman Scholars were involved in liberal political causes, including work for the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), LGBT activism, or teaching classes about LGBT and politics."
Many of the winners went on to work for Democratic campaigns and Democratic politicians, but according to a review of those scholars' current activities, no active conservatives were noted.
Similarly, The Fix recently discovered 75% of Truman Scholars from 2015 and 2016 remain involved in liberal politics a decade later.
Only a single winner from those years could be found who today works for conservative causes.
Meanwhile, the government-funded foundation essentially tells The College Fix there is no bias and that the outlet should encourage more people to apply.
Lamb says there are several ways to go about correcting this, like allowing MBA students to apply or deliberately pursuing students at right-leaning universities.
If the foundation refuses to do that, he personally thinks the program should be defunded.
The Truman Foundation's board includes George W. Bush-appointed federal Judge Laura Cordero, San Diego Democratic Mayor Todd Gloria, former Missouri Democratic Sen. Claire McCaskill, Rhode Island Democratic Representative Gabe Amo, and Secretary of Education Linda McMahon.
