Economist and policy analyst Martin Anderson, who served under three U.S. presidents and was one of Ronald Reagan's leading advisers, died this past weekend. He was 78 years old.
Born in Lowell, Massachusetts, Anderson earned a doctorate in industrial management from the MIT Sloan School of Management in 1962.
After several years as a college professor, Anderson served as director of policy research for Richard Nixon's 1968 presidential campaign. Following Nixon's election triumph, Anderson served as special assistant to the president from 1969-70, and then as special consultant to the president for systems analysis from 1970-71.
A follower of philosopher and novelist Ayn Rand, he was credited with launching Alan Greenspan's career in government, and also with helping to end military conscription in the United States.
Anderson went on to serve as a senior policy adviser to Reagan's 1976 and 1980 presidential campaigns. Under President Reagan, he was the chief domestic policy adviser from 1981-82 and a member of the President's Economic Advisory Board from 1982-89.
Under President George H.W. Bush, Anderson was a member of the President's General Advisory Committee on Arms Control.
Anderson was a trustee of the Ronald Reagan Presidential Foundation from 1985-90 and a senior fellow at the Hoover Institution since 1971. He was named the Keith and Jan Hurlbut Senior Fellow there in 1998.
Anderson was also a columnist, TV commentator, and author whose books include "Welfare: The Political Economy of Welfare Reform in the United States."
Most recently, he co-authored with his wife, Annelise, several books that have led historians to re-assess Reagan’s intellectual and personal involvement in policy, including the bestsellers
"Reagan in His Own Hand" and
"Reagan's Secret War: The Untold Story of His Fight to Save the World from Nuclear Disaster."
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