Heritage Foundation, Under Fire, Mulls PR Help

Conservative think tank The Heritage Foundation is mulling the hire of a "high-profile" PR firm, according to a report, as it is bombarded with criticism over a report that said immigration reform could cost $6.3T.

Politico reports that the foundation is taking on water from Republicans and conservative outside groups which often align with the institution, as well as Democrats, as its immigration report is ripped by critics.

The Washington Post noted the foundation helped kill immigration reform six years with two reports predicting a flood of 100M immigrants and swelling of the welfare ranks.

The latest report was immediately attacked as "flawed" by influential Tea Party Sen. Marco Rubio (R-Fla) and ex-Mississippi Gov. Haley Barbour, among others. A key point of contention on both sides of the political aisle is the argument in a Harvard dissertation by one of the study's co-authors that there are genetic IQ differences between races and low-IQ immigrants should be barred from entry to the U.S.

Heritage VP of communications Michael Gonzalez has been handling the fallout. "We believe that every person is created equal and that everyone should have equal opportunity to reach the ladder of success and climb as high as they can dream," he wrote in a blog post May 8, borrowing from the Declaration of Independence and Constitution. He distanced the report from the controversial author, Jason Richwine, stressing that Richwine "did not shape the methodology or the policy recommendations" of the report.

[updated 5/10: Heritage announced Richwine's resignation Friday.]

In addition to a setback to the organization's hopes to derail immigration reform, it is a black eye and PR disaster for its newly minted president, former Sen. Jim DeMint (R-S.C.).

Politico said Heritage is considering hiring a high-profile PR firm to assist with the barrage, a change for the group that traditionally relies on its internal team.

Gonzalez, a Cuban immigrant, is a former Wall Street Journal reporter with a global pedigree who joined Heritage in 2009 after stints at the SEC and State Dept. during the George W. Bush administration.