Joseph Paul Overton (4 January 1960 – 30 June 2003) was an American political scientist who served as the senior vice president of the

Mackinac Center for Public Policy The Mackinac Center for Public Policy () is a think tank headquartered in Midland, Michigan. Through research and programs, the Mackinac Center supports lower taxes, reduced regulatory authority for state agencies, right-to-work laws, school ...

. He is best known for his work in the mid-1990s developing an idea since known as the

Overton window The Overton window is the range of subjects and arguments politically acceptable to the mainstream population at a given time. It is also known as the window of discourse. The key to the concept is that the window changes over time; it can shif ...

. ''Overton window'', at the Mackinac Center
/ref>

Biography

Overton was born in Southwestern Michigan, but his family moved to

Midland, Michigan Midland is a city in Midland County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 42,547 at the 2020 census. It is the principal city of the Midland metropolitan statistical area, part of the larger Saginaw-Midland-Bay City ...

in 1965 for a job with the

Dow Chemical Company The Dow Chemical Company is an American multinational corporation headquartered in Midland, Michigan, United States. The company was among the three largest chemical producers in the world in 2021. It is the operating subsidiary of Dow Inc., ...

. He graduated from

Herbert Henry Dow High School Herbert Henry Dow High School (H.H. Dow High School) is a public high school located in Midland, Michigan, United States. The school, a part of Midland Public Schools, is a National Blue Ribbon School of Excellence and in 2008 was named one of t ...

in 1978. He held a

bachelor of science degree A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, B.S., B.Sc., SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree that is awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Scienc ...

electrical engineering Electrical engineering is an engineering discipline concerned with the study, design, and application of equipment, devices, and systems that use electricity, electronics, and electromagnetism. It emerged as an identifiable occupation in the l ...

from

Michigan Technological University Michigan Technological University (Michigan Tech, MTU, or simply Tech) is a public research university in Houghton, Michigan, United States. It was founded in 1885 as the Michigan Mining School, the first post-secondary institution in the Uppe ...

and a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School at

Western Michigan University Western Michigan University (Western Michigan, Western or WMU) is a Public university, public research university in Kalamazoo, Michigan, United States. It was initially established as Western State Normal School in 1903 by Governor Aaron T. B ...

Overton was admitted to the

State Bar of Michigan The State Bar of Michigan is the governing body for lawyers in the State of Michigan. Membership is mandatory for attorneys who practice law in Michigan. The organization's mission is to aid in promoting improvements in the administration of ju ...

in 1994. He was appointed to the Michigan Appellate Defender Commission by Governor

John Engler John Mathias Engler (born October 12, 1948) is an American politician, lawyer, businessman, and lobbyist who served as the 46th governor of Michigan from 1991 to 2003. Considered one of the country's top lobbyists, he is a member of the Republi ...

. His appointment was recommended by the

Michigan Supreme Court The Michigan Supreme Court is the highest court in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is Michigan's court of last resort and consists of seven justices. The Court is located in the Michigan Hall of Justice at 925 Ottawa Street in Lansing, the s ...

. Before joining the Mackinac Center, he worked as a quality specialist, project manager and electrical engineer at the

in Midland, Michigan. Overton was an ardent

libertarian Libertarianism (from ; or from ) is a political philosophy that holds freedom, personal sovereignty, and liberty as primary values. Many libertarians believe that the concept of freedom is in accord with the Non-Aggression Principle, according ...

, and while associated with the Mackinac Center in Midland, he promoted and studied

free-market In economics, a free market is an economic system in which the prices of goods and services are determined by supply and demand expressed by sellers and buyers. Such markets, as modeled, operate without the intervention of government or any ot ...

principles for over ten years while travelling to more than a dozen countries in Europe, Asia, Africa and South America. One of his other responsibilities was fund-raising. In order to explain what

think tank A think tank, or public policy institute, is a research institute that performs research and advocacy concerning topics such as social policy, political strategy, economics, military, technology, and culture. Most think tanks are non-governme ...

s do, in the 1990s he designed a brochure to illustrate the range of policies politically acceptable to the mainstream at a given time. That idea eventually became known as the

, and his lasting legacy. He opined that it is the responsibility of think-tanks to propose policies outside the window and shift the window. In 1998, Overton was honored with the

Roe Award The Roe Award is an annual award given by the State Policy Network that "pays tribute to those in the state public policy movement whose achievements have greatly advanced the free market philosophy" and "recognizes leadership, innovation and acco ...

from the

State Policy Network The State Policy Network (SPN) is a nonprofit organization that serves as a network for conservative and libertarian think tanks focusing on state-level policy in the United States. The network serves as a public policy clearinghouse and advi ...

(SPN) at their meeting in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Georgia (U.S. state), most populous city in the U.S. state of Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia. It is the county seat, seat of Fulton County, Georg ...

. The award, presented annually, honors individuals who have successfully promoted free market philosophy while displaying innovation, accomplishment and innovation in public policy. He died at age 43 from injuries suffered in a crash while piloting an

ultralight aircraft Ultralight aviation (called microlight aviation in some countries) is the flying of lightweight, 1- or 2-seat fixed-wing aircraft. Some countries differentiate between weight-shift control and Aircraft flight control system, conventional three-a ...

, soon after taking off from the

Tuscola Area Airport Tuscola Area Airport is a public use airport located three nautical miles (6 km) southwest of the central business district of Caro, a city in Tuscola County, Michigan, United States. It is owned by the Tuscola Area Airport Authority. It ...

near

Caro, Michigan Caro is a city in and the county seat of Tuscola County, Michigan, Tuscola County, Michigan, United States. The population was 4,328 at the United States Census, 2020, 2020 census and 4,145 at the United States Census, 2000, 2000 census (an incre ...

. Overton had just married on March 29, 2003, a few months before the accident. Shortly after his death, he was honored by the State Policy Network with the creation of the Overton Award, a special distinction. It is bestowed infrequently and limited to COOs or Executive VPs of non-profit, free market organizations who demonstrate the personal qualities that Overton possessed. These include humility in supporting their peers, leadership that builds a great team, and developing effective strategies that magnify the ideas and influence of their organization. The Overton Award has been awarded only six times since its inception in 2003.

References

External links

Think Tank Leader Dies In Plane CrashJoseph P. Overton
nbsp;— biographic overview {{DEFAULTSORT:Overton, Joseph P. 1960 births 2003 deaths 20th-century American philosophers American libertarians American political philosophers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in the United States Western Michigan University Cooley Law School alumni Michigan Technological University alumni Mackinac Center for Public Policy People from Midland, Michigan Midland Dow High School alumni Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 2003 Accidental deaths in Michigan

Biography

See also

References

External links