Sam Westrop has headed Islamist Watch since March 2017, when MEF absorbed the counter-extremism unit of Americans for Peace and Tolerance (APT), where he was the research director. Before that, he ran Stand for Peace, a London-based counter-extremism organization monitoring Islamists throughout the UK.
Clifford V. Smith is MEF’s liaison to decision makers and opinion leaders in Washington, D.C. He holds a B.A. from Washington State University, an M.P.P. with a focus on international relations from Pepperdine University, and a law degree from the Catholic University of America. He is a member of the Maryland Bar and the DC Bar. An experienced political operative, he is the veteran of numerous campaigns and has held several positions in Congress. He has helped guide multiple pieces of legislation through Congress, and his work on illicit financing of radical groups has spawned multiple Congressional investigations. His writings have appeared in National Review, The Dispatch, The Print (India), Israel Hayom, the Middle East Quarterly, and other domestic and international publications.
