Collection context
Summary
- Creator:
- Hamilton, Lee
- Abstract:
- Consists of the electronic and paper files of Lee Hamilton and his senior advisor and special assistant to the Iraq Study Group.
- Extent:
- 13 linear feet (10 cartons)
- Language:
- Materials are in English .
- Preferred citation:
[item and date], [series], Lee H. Hamilton Iraq Study Group Papers, Modern Political Papers Collection, Indiana University Libraries, Bloomington.
Background
- Biographical / Historical:
The Iraq Study Group grew out of concern expressed by Representative Frank Wolf (R-Va) in late 2005 that the U.S. was on the wrong path in Iraq and his request to the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) to facilitate an inquiry task force. Consultations over the next few months brought together the James A. Baker III Institute for Public Policy at Rice University, the Center for the Study of the Presidency, and the Center for Strategic and International Studies as sponsoring organizations of a bipartisan task force, to be co-chaired by James A. Baker III and Lee H. Hamilton. They were joined by former Secretary of Defense William J. Perry; former Governor and U.S. Senator Charles S. Robb; former Congressman and White House chief of staff Leon E. Panetta; Vernon E. Jordan, Jr., advisor to former President Bill Clinton; former Associate Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O'Connor; former U.S. Senator Alan Simpson; former Attorney General Edwin Meese III; former Secretary of State Lawrence S. Eagleburger, and former CIA Director Robert Gates until his nomination as Secretary of Defense. The group was launched on March 15, 2006 on the premise that with the best efforts of a bipartisan group, it was possible to solve our most intractable national problems.
Four expert working groups of 44 leading foreign policy analysts and experts on Iraq, working with the staff of the United States Institute of Peace, focused on Strategic Environment, Military and Security Issues, Political Development, and the Economy and Reconstruction. Through nine plenary sessions, a five-day trip to Baghdad, and interviews with over 170 experts, military men, and political players in Iraq and the region, they developed over the next six months an assessment of the current situation and the 79 recommendations contained in their report, The Iraq Study Group Report: The Way Forward - A New Approach, for which they lobbied strenuously over the ensuing year. The authorized version, published by Vintage Books, sold 35,000 copies in the first week of its release in early December 2006.
- Scope and Content:
The collection consists of the electronic and paper files created by Lee Hamilton; Christopher Kojm, his Senior Advisor to the Study Group; and Benjamin Rhodes, his Special Assistant to the Study Group. It documents the formation of the group, its work, the creation of the final report, and follow-up to that report and includes research resources used by the group. Electronic records were printed out upon receipt to ensure preservation of the complete collection.
Although the goal of the digital collection was to create a complete set of records with minimal duplication, duplication between records received in paper form and electronically has not been addressed. However, where all three creators had compilations of the same documents, as in the case of briefing books for the plenary sessions, Hamilton's has been completely digitized but from the other two copies only documents not in Hamilton's copy or annotated documents have been digitized. Duplicates with unique annotations have been digitized throughout the collection. Also, duplicates in the Senior Advisor and Special Assistant files have often been maintained because of the possible importance of their context for research purposes. The many drafts of sections of the final report, often with very small changes, have been digitized. With the exception of the Electronic Files, the Special Assistant files contain copious annotations by Hamilton, particularly in the ISG Process binders.
Correspondence from private citizens has not been digitized for copyright reasons, nor has material obviously under copyright, such as newspaper articles. In lists of contact information for ISG principals and staff, cell phone numbers and home information have been redacted to protect personal privacy.
- Acquisition information:
- The collection was acquired in August 2007 as both paper and electronic files, the latter being transferred via USB flash drives and printed out to ensure their preservation. Email was transferred electronically.
- Processing information:
Processed by Kate Cruikshank.
Completed in 2015.
- Arrangement:
Files are grouped into three series. Hamilton's Files consist of his notebooks, office files, plenary session briefing books, and a file of expert group working papers. The Senior Advisor Files consist of Electronic Files as received, with chronological files first, then topical files in alphabetical order; Office Files as received; and archivist-generated subseries of Baghdad Trip; Bills; Conferences; Hearings; Meetings; Memos; Notes, consisting of steno books of notes from meetings; Plenary Sessions; Press; Reports; Resources; Speeches; Topical Files; and Working Papers. The Special Assistant Files consist of Electronic Files as received; Baghdad Trip files as received; archivist-generated subseries of Bills, Materials, Plenary Sessions, and Press; Process Files, consisting of the contents of ISG Process binders and Planning binders providing chronological documentation of the work of the Iraq Study Group; and archivist-generated subseries of Reports, Resources, Working Files, and Working Papers.
Online content
Access
- RESTRICTIONS:
-
Private address and telephone information has been redacted. Otherwise there are no access restrictions on the collection. Prior arrangement is necessary to use the paper materials, as they are stored offsite. Contact Kate Cruikshank, Political Papers Specialist, 812-856-4601, cruiksha@indiana.edu.
- TERMS OF ACCESS:
-
Copyright for the Collection
Digitization of the Iraq Study Group papers was undertaken with the permission of the donor, Lee Hamilton, who retains literary rights to the collection. Any documents to which copyrights appear to be held by others have not been included in the digital collection.
Terms of Use for the Collection
Indiana University provides the information contained in this collection for non-commercial, personal, or research use only. Any other use, including but not limited to commercial or scholarly reproductions, redistribution, publication or transmission, whether by electronic means or otherwise, without prior written permission of the copyright holder is strictly prohibited. As Indiana University does not hold copyrights for the materials, researchers are responsible for negotiating rights for reproduction and publication beyond the basic academic "fair use" permitted by copyright law.
Mechanism for Removal
If you are a copyright owner and feel that an item in the collection was mistakenly included without your permission, please send a message to Kate Cruikshank, Political Papers Specialist, cruiksha@indiana.edu. Please include your name, contact information, and a complete description of the material including the date of the item in question.
- PREFERRED CITATION:
-
[item and date], [series], Lee H. Hamilton Iraq Study Group Papers, Modern Political Papers Collection, Indiana University Libraries, Bloomington.
- CAMPUS:
- Indiana University Bloomington
- LOCATION OF THIS COLLECTION:
-
Herman B Wells Library E4601320 East Tenth StreetBloomington, Indiana 47405-7000, United States
- CAMPUS:
- Indiana University Bloomington
- CONTACT:
-
812-855-1538congpprs@indiana.edu