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Partisan Think Tanks: Between Knowledge and Politics

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Partisan Think Tanks: Between Knowledge and Politics PARTISAN THINK TANKS: BETWEEN KNOWLEDGE AND POLITICS. THE CASE OF PENSAR FOUNDATION AND PRO PARTY IN ARGENTINA A Thesis Submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences of Georgetown University in partial fulfillment of the requierements for the degree of Master of Arts in Development Management and Policy By Leandro Echt, B.A. Washington, DC April 20, 2016 Copyright 2016 by Leandro Echt All rights reserved ii PARTISAN THINK TANKS: BETWEEN KNOWLEDGE AND POLITICS. THE CASE OF PENSAR FOUNDATION AND PRO PARTY IN ARGENTINA. Leandro Echt, B.A. Thesis advisors: Adolfo Garcé, Ph.D. and Julián Bertranou, Ph.D. ABSTRACT While Argentina has experienced waves of growth of think tanks since the return of democracy, the country is not an exception regarding the scarcity of partisan think tanks supporters in the region. Even though there are numerous external think tanks in the country, political parties, beyond some foundations linked to certain leaderships and of poor durability, have failed to consolidate partisan think tanks that help shape their programmatic horizon. The lack of partisan think tanks in the country comes from the hand of the absence of studies on these institutions and their links with political parties. In a context of increasing complexity of public policy issues, the analysis of the role of think tanks and their relationship with the political parties becomes increasingly important. On 15 June, 2010 the party Republican Proposal (PRO) publicly relaunched the Pensar Foundation, its partisan think tank. Created in 2005 with the aim to underpin the growth of PRO, from 2010, and according to the presidential elections of 2011, Pensar Foundation would have as its main objective the design of government plans in case of Mauricio Macri, leader and candidate of the party, achieved a victory. Currently, Pensar Foundation not only presents itself as the most established and productive partisan think tank, but as the one that better fits the notion of think tank. The objective of this research is to analyze the links between Pensar Foundation and Republican Proposal (PRO). iii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS La presente tesis es el resultado de un proceso sinuoso, plagado de retos, así como de momentos de enorme aprendizaje y disfrute. Muchas personas han enriquecido dicha experiencia, y merecen un explícito agradecimiento. En primer lugar, ambos directores, Adolfo y Julián, quienes han iluminado el contenido de la tesis con sus aportes intelectuales y metodológicos, y me han acompañado con preciados consejos y sabia empatía. Segundo, todos los entrevistados, quienes han dedicado su valioso tiempo y se han interesado en mi trabajo. Dentro de ese grupo, un especial agradecimiento al equipo de la Fundación Pensar, que me abrió las puertas de la organización infinidad de veces, permitiéndome admirar su esfuerzo y compromiso. Tercero, mis amigos y compañeros de cursada, y el cuerpo docente y administrativo de la maestría y la universidad, por haber colaborado, de diversas formas, en este proceso. Por último, Luciana, compañera y colega, por su constante apoyo, y por los muchos intercambios y contribuciones que se hacen presente a lo largo de todo el documento. iv Índice Introducción ...................................................................................................................... 1 1. Marco teórico ................................................................................................................ 5 1.1. La relación entre conocimiento y política ................................................................. 6 1.2. Los think tanks: ¿qué son y qué hacen? .................................................................. 10 1.2.1. La cuestión de la independencia ........................................................................... 15 1.2.2. Tipos ..................................................................................................................... 17 1.2.3. Funciones .............................................................................................................. 19 1.3. Think tanks partidarios: buscando su especificidad ................................................ 22 1.3.1. Think tanks partidarios ......................................................................................... 26 1.3.2. El sistema de partidos ........................................................................................... 29 1.3.3. Funciones .............................................................................................................. 32 1.3.4. Autonomía y capacidad de incidencia .................................................................. 35 1.3.5. Sostenibilidad ....................................................................................................... 39 1.4. Think tanks partidarios en Argentina ...................................................................... 42 1.5. Una hoja de ruta para estudiar a los think tanks partidarios .................................... 52 2. El caso de la Fundación Pensar y el PRO ................................................................... 55 2.1. Think tanks, fundaciones y conocimiento técnico en el ADN PRO ....................... 56 2.2. Orígenes de la Fundación Pensar: del grupo ideológico a la alineación partidaria . 62 2.3. La construcción del think tank interno .................................................................... 67 2.4. Horizonte 2015: profesionalización y nuevas funciones ......................................... 77 2.5. La Red Federal: expansión territorial del PRO y contenidos de campaña .............. 91 2.6. Institucionalización e incidencia ........................................................................... 101 2.7. ¿Producción o administración de conocimiento? .................................................. 114 2.8. El think tank y la “militancia experta”: dos piezas del rompecabezas PRO ......... 116 2.9. A la expectativa de las presidenciales 2015: escenarios posibles ......................... 123 Conclusiones ................................................................................................................. 131 Anexo – Entrevistas ...................................................................................................... 138 Bibliografía ................................................................................................................... 141 v Introducción El 15 de junio de 2010 el partido Propuesta Republicana (PRO) relanzaba públicamente la Fundación Pensar, la “usina de ideas” del partido. Creada en 2005 con el objetivo de apuntalar el crecimiento del PRO, a partir del 2010, y en función de las elecciones presidenciales de 2011, Pensar tendría como objetivo principal el armado de planes de gobierno en caso de que Mauricio Macri, líder y candidato del partido, lograra una victoria. A partir de su relanzamiento la Fundación Pensar atravesó diversas etapas que, en forma incremental, darían como resultado su creciente institucionalización en el marco de la estructura del PRO, al punto de volverse una pieza clave de la estrategia nacional del partido. Esta estrategia le ha permitido al PRO, en el marco del frente Cambiemos, nada menos que ganar el balotaje presidencial de noviembre de 2015, junto con la provincia de Buenos Aires y retener el gobierno la Ciudad. Si bien Argentina ha experimentado olas de crecimiento de think tanks desde el retorno de la democracia, lo cierto es que el país no es la excepción respecto de la escasez de think tanks partidarios en la región. Aun cuando existen numerosos think tanks externos, las fuerzas políticas, más allá de algunas fundaciones vinculadas a ciertos liderazgos y de poca durabilidad, no han logrado consolidar think tanks internos que contribuyan a conformar el horizonte programático del partido. En ese sentido, Pensar se presenta no solamente como el think tank partidario más consolidado y productivo, sino como el único que se ajusta acabadamente a la noción de think tank. La escasez de experiencias de think tanks partidarios en el país viene de la mano de la ausencia de estudios sobre este tipo de instituciones y sus vínculos con los partidos políticos. Profundizar en el estudio de las relaciones entre think tanks partidarios y partidos políticos se vuelve relevante en tanto se trata de una modalidad particular de 1 vínculo entre las esferas del conocimiento y de la política, sobre el cual las ciencias sociales han reflexionado desde distintos ángulos. En un contexto de creciente complejidad de los problemas de política pública, y en el marco de la denominada sociedad del conocimiento, el análisis del rol de instituciones como los think tanks y su relación con las fuerzas políticas adquiere creciente importancia. El objetivo de esta investigación es analizar el vínculo entre la Fundación Pensar y Propuesta Republicana (PRO). El estudio parte de la suposición de que, en tanto “usina de ideas” del partido, Pensar produce conocimiento vinculado a política pública y acerca alternativas de política pública a los diferentes decisores y referentes del partido. En ese sentido, se busca responder a las siguientes preguntas: ¿Cómo es el proceso de producción de conocimiento al interior de la Fundación Pensar? ¿Cuáles son los mecanismos que favorecen la circulación de conocimiento entre la Fundación Pensar y el PRO? ¿Cuál es la incidencia del conocimiento producido por la Fundación Pensar en las acciones del PRO? ¿Qué factores favorecen esta interacción y bajo qué condiciones?
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