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Center for American Progress

U.S. progressive / center-left

Owned byIndependent 501(c)(3) nonprofit governed by a board that includes founder John Podesta, hedge fund billionaire Donald Sussman, Swiss billionaire Hansjörg Wyss, former HUD Secretary Julián Castro, and other Democratic-aligned figures
FundingPrivate donations from major liberal foundations (Bloomberg Philanthropies, Gates Foundation, Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, Hewlett Foundation, Sandler Foundation), large Wall Street firms (Citigroup, Blackstone, Goldman Sachs, Bank of America), and Silicon Valley companies (Apple, Google, Microsoft); early seed funding came from George Soros; as of 2025 CAP has stopped publishing its donor list, citing concern that donors could be targeted by the current administration
On the administrationbroadly critical

Background

CAP was founded in 2003 by John Podesta, who had served as White House Chief of Staff under President Bill Clinton. It was launched in July 2003 under the name American Majority Institution, then rebranded as the Center for American Progress on September 1, 2003. Podesta and colleagues including Terry McAuliffe and Harold Ickes designed it explicitly as a liberal alternative to the Heritage Foundation and the American Enterprise Institute, giving it a clear ideological mission from its start. Early funding came from philanthropists Herbert and Marion Sandler and a $3 million pledge from George Soros. Podesta led the organization until 2011, when Neera Tanden became president and CEO; Tanden later withdrew from a Biden cabinet nomination in 2021 following controversy over social media posts, and Patrick Gaspard led CAP briefly before Tanden returned as president and CEO in early 2025. Over the years CAP grew into one of the most influential progressive think tanks in the U.S., playing a role in shaping the Affordable Care Act and other major Democratic legislative priorities. It has also drawn criticism from the right for its close ties to Democratic Party figures and from some on the left for accepting corporate and Wall Street funding. During the second Trump term, CAP has taken an openly adversarial posture, publishing detailed critiques of administration policies on tariffs, immigration enforcement, foreign policy, and what it calls democratic backsliding.

Sources

  1. Center for American Progress – Wikipedia
  2. Center for American Progress (CAP) – InfluenceWatch
  3. Trump Administration – Center for American Progress
  4. Our Supporters – Center for American Progress
  5. Center for American Progress Profile – OpenSecrets
  6. The Origins of the Center for American Progress

Profile compiled 2026-06-26; refreshed when ownership, funding, or the administration changes.

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