Draft:John Tomasi

John Tomasi (born 1961) is an American political philosopher. He is the inaugural President of the non-partisan Heterodox Academy, a non-profit advocacy group of academics working to counteract a lack of viewpoint diversity on college campuses. Previously, he served as the 1843 Romeo Elton Professor of Natural Philosophy and Professor of Political Science at Brown University, where he founded and directed the Political Theory Project. He is the author of the influential Free Market Fairness and numerous other works on libertarianism, economics, and public policy.

Born in New Hampshire, Tomasi grew up in the small town of Underhill, Vermont.

Tomasi attended the St. John's College Annapolis program in Classics in 1982 and graduated from Colby College (magna cum laude) in 1987, followed by a Master of Arts in Philosophy from the University of Arizona in 1989. He furthered his studies at Oxford University, obtaining a Bachelor of Philosophy with a distinction for his thesis in 1991, and a Doctor of Philosophy in 1993.

Career
John Tomasi has established a notable career as a political philosopher, with particular expertise at the crossroads of economics, ethics, and public policy.

His academic career began after earning his PhD from the University of Oxford, followed by appointments at Princeton University as the Visiting Research Scholar at The University Center for Human Values, and Visiting Assistant Professor at the Program in Ethics in Society at Stanford University. He went on to obtain appointments at The Social Philosophy & Policy Center of Bowling Green State University, the University of Arizona, and Harvard University, before becoming a Professor of Political Science at Brown University, where he was ultimately endowed the Romeo Elton Professorship of Natural Philosophy and recognized with awards for excellence in teaching.

In 2003, Tomasi founded the think tank and research center Political Theory Project (PTP), where he would serve as director for the remainder of his tenure at Brown University. The PTP attracted prominent political and economic thinkers and promoting a culture of open inquiry and viewpoint diversity, and grew to encompass a wider range of programing, including seminars and lecture series. Among these is the Janus Forum Lecture Series which featured speakers such as hosted Noam Chomsky, Steven Pinker, Paul Krugman, Jeffrey Sachs, and Glenn Greenwald, among others. Two student publications, the Brown Political Review and Brown Journal of Philosophy, Politics and Economics were sponsored by the Political Theory Project. The center's stated mission was to "investigate the ideas and institutions that make societies free, prosperous, and fair." According to Tomasi, the PTP focused "on the interplay of democratic and market-based ideals, with a commitment to examining issues from a variety of ideological perspectives."

The PTP gained attention and faced some criticism for its acceptance of gifts from various free-market organizations and foundations, such as Atlas Network, Searle Freedom Trust, and the Charles Koch Foundation. The PTP maintained that it followed a "Programming First" policy wherein donors are not given input regarding the center's activities.

Tomasi is widely recognized for his influential 2012 book Free Market Fairness, a leading text of the movement known as Bleeding Heart Libertarianism, which explores the reconciliation of social justice with free markets. The book was described by economist Tyler Cowen as "one of the very best philosophical treatments of libertarian thought, ever." Philosopher Alan Thomas wrote in Res Publica that Free Market Fairness is "a landmark publication in political philosophy." In the fusionist-inspired project, Tomasi introduces the idea of "market democracy," which he refers to as welding a "thick conception of economic liberty" with "a robust conception of social justice as the ultimate standard of institutional evaluation".

In 2018, invited by the Foundation for Progress and the liberal platform La Otra Mirada, Tomasi traveled to Santiago, Chile to meet with Chilean President Sebastián Pinera to discuss the application of his model of market democracy at the public policy level.

Tomasi left Brown University to assume the presidency of Heterodox Academy (HxA) in 2022. He also holds memberships and board positions with the American Political Science Association, The Institute for Civil Society, The Institute for Humane Studies, and the Calvin Coolidge Presidential Foundation.

Chapters in Books

 * "Economic Liberties and Human Rights" Are Markets Moral?, University of Pennsylvania Press with contribution by John Tomasi, Richard Epstein, Robert P. George, Gurcharan Das, Deirdre McCloskey, Fonna Forman, Andrew Bibby, Peter Lawler, Steven Lukes, Peter McNamara, and Ian Shapiro, 2018.
 * "Economic Liberty" with Jeppe von Platz. The Cambridge Companion to Liberalism, ed. Chandran Kukathas and Steven Wall, 2014.
 * "The Moral Case for Economic Liberty" Index of Economic Freedom – The Heritage Foundation, Wall Street Journal and Heritage Foundation, 2014.
 * "Democratic Legitimacy and Economic Liberty" New Essays in Moral and Political Philosophy ed. Ellen Frankel Paul, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2012.
 * "Classical Liberalism" with Jason Brennan. The Oxford Handbook of Political Philosophy, ed. David Estlund, New York: Oxford University Press, 2012.
 * "Can Feminism Be Liberated from Governmentalism?", Toward a Humanist Justice: The Political Philosophy of Susan Moller Okin, eds. Robert Reich and Debra Satz, New York: Oxford University Press, 2009.
 * "Should Political Liberals Be Compassionate Conservatives?: Philosophical Foundations of the Faith-Based Initiative" Morality and Politics ed. Jeffrey Paul, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2004.
 * "Sovereignty, Commerce and Cosmopolitanism: Lessons from Early America for the Future of the World" After Socialism, ed. Ellen Frankel Paul, New York: Cambridge University Press, 2003.
 * "Justice", The Oxford Companion to American Law, eds. K. Hall, J. Elly, J. Grossman, N. Hull, New York: Oxford University Press, 2002.
 * "Governance Beyond the Nation State: James Madison on Foreign Policy and 'Universal Peace'", James Madison and the Future of Limited Government, ed. John Samples, Washington: The Cato Institute, 2002.

Journal Articles

 * "Market Democracy and Meaningful Work: A Reply to Critics", in Res Publica, Volume 21, Number 4, November 2015.
 * With Dan D'Amico "The Politics of Precarity, A Discussion of Sanford Schram's The Return of Ordinary Capitalism: Neoliberalism, Precarity, Occupy" Perspectives on Politics, Vol. 14, Number 2, June 2016.
 * "Democratic Capitalism: Reply to Critics," Critical Review, 26 3-4, 2014.
 * "Social Justice, Free Market Style" Juncture (Institute for Public Policy Research, London) 19/1, May 2012.
 * "Democratic Legitimacy and Economic Liberty" Social Philosophy & Policy, 29/1, Winter 2012.
 * "Liberal Theocracy and the Justificatory Dance" (Symposium on Lucas Swaine The Liberal Conscience), Philosophy & Public Policy Quarterly, Summer 2009.
 * "Should Political Liberals be Compassionate Conservatives?: Philosophical Foundations of the Faith-Based Initiative" Social Philosophy & Policy, 21/1, January 2004.
 * "Sovereignty, Commerce and Cosmopolitanism: Lessons from Early America for the Future of the World" Social Philosophy & Policy, 20/1: 223–46, January 2003.
 * "Civic Education and Ethical Subservience: From Mozert to Santa Fe and Beyond", NOMOS XLIII: Moral and Political Education: Special Issue, eds. Stephen Macedo and Yael Tamir, New York: New York University Press, 2002.
 * "The Key to Locke's Proviso" British Journal for the History of Philosophy, 6/3, October 1998.
 * "Liberalism, Sanctity and the Prohibition of Abortion" The Journal of Philosophy, XCIV/10, October 1997.
 * "Kymlicka, Liberalism and Respect for Cultural Minorities" Ethics, 105/2. April 1995.
 * "Community in the Minimal State" Critical Review: Special Issue on Communitarianism (with contributions by Charles Taylor, Ronald Beiner, Will Kymlicka, and Brenda Almond) Fall 1994.
 * "Individual Rights and Community Virtues" Ethics, (101)3, April 1991.
 * "Plato's Statesman Story: The Birth of Fiction Reconceived" Philosophy and Literature, 14/2, Fall 1990.
 * "The Power Principle" Criminal Justice Ethics, Summer/Fall 1989.

Awards and Honors

 * Romeo Elton Professor of Natural Philosophy, Brown University, 2013.
 * The Charles G. Koch Prize, George Mason University, 2010.
 * Hayek Lecture Prize, Manhattan Institute, 2009.
 * Undergraduate Council of Students Teaching Prize, Brown University, 2004/5.
 * Henry Merritt Wriston Prize, Brown University, 1996.
 * Stanley J. Bernstein Assistant Professor of Social Science-International Affairs. Named to an endowed Junior Chair in Social Sciences/ International Affairs, July 1994–2000.
 * Miles Clausen Prize for Outstanding Service to the College, Oxford University, 1991.
 * President of Middle Common Room (Elected position with seat on College Governing Body), Corpus Christi College, Oxford University, 1990-1.
 * John M. Olin Foundation Fellowship, Oxford University, 1989–93.

Personal Life
John Tomasi lives in Rhode Island with his wife, Amy. They have two children.