Center for Military Readiness
A U.S. nonprofit military-policy organization focused on service eligibility, military gender policy, and personnel readiness.
Last updated August 26, 2026
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Overview
The Center for Military Readiness (CMR) is a United States tax-exempt nonprofit organization founded in 1993 by Elaine Donnelly. Based in Livonia, Michigan, it conducts advocacy and policy communications concerning military personnel policy, especially questions involving sexual orientation, gender identity, women’s participation, and the relationship between personnel rules and military readiness. CMR emerged during the debate surrounding the implementation of President Bill Clinton’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. The organization has opposed the service of gay and transgender people in the U.S. armed forces and has argued for restricting the number of military positions available to women, particularly positions involving ground combat or other combat-related assignments. Its public arguments have generally framed these questions in terms of unit cohesion, morale, military performance, standards, privacy, and readiness rather than civil-rights expansion. Elaine Donnelly has served as the organization’s founder and president and has been its most prominent public spokesperson. In statements about women in combat, Donnelly has argued that integrating women into combat units could affect male morale and military performance. A 2004 study of women’s roles in the U.S. military described CMR as a particularly significant organization representing opposition to expanding women’s military opportunities when such expansion was presented as potentially affecting troop readiness. The organization became involved in a prominent dispute during the 1990s over the Navy training record of Lt. Kara Hultgreen, one of the first women to attempt qualification as a carrier-based combat pilot. After Hultgreen’s death, CMR circulated material concerning another pilot’s confidential training records and issued claims alleging favoritism by the Navy. The pilot, Lt. Zoe D. Lohrenz, sued the Center for defamation. The court concluded that Lohrenz was a public figure for purposes of the case and that she had not established the required showing of actual malice; an appeal was also denied. The court emphasized that its ruling on public-figure status did not determine whether Lohrenz was a competent aviator or diminish her professional conduct. CMR has been characterized as a right-wing organization by the Southern Poverty Law Center and other sources. Its network and advisory or board affiliations have included figures such as Allan C. Carlson, Frank Gaffney, David Horowitz, Frederick Kroesen, John Lenczowski, Kate O’Beirne, Carlisle Trost, Claudius E. Watts III, Faith Whittlesey, and Walter E. Williams. Reported former or at-large participants have included Linda Chavez, Beverly LaHaye, Phyllis Schlafly, and Wally Schirra. The exact current status of individual board and member affiliations is not established in the supplied material. In 2011, CMR boycotted the Conservative Political Action Conference because the event included GOProud, an LGBT-oriented membership organization associated with the Republican Party. This action reflected CMR’s continuing opposition to LGBT participation in military and conservative policy forums. CMR is best understood not as a commercial consumer brand but as a specialized advocacy and policy organization whose influence has come through reports, commentary, media statements, and participation in debates over U.S. defense personnel policy.
History
The Center for Military Readiness was founded in 1993 by Elaine Donnelly in the context of the national controversy over President Bill Clinton’s “Don’t ask, don’t tell” policy. From its beginning, the organization focused on the proposition that changes to military personnel eligibility and assignment rules should be judged primarily by their effects on readiness, cohesion, morale, discipline, and performance. CMR opposed allowing gay and transgender people to serve in the U.S. military and became an advocate for limiting women’s military participation, particularly in combat units and other positions historically closed to women. Donnelly’s public arguments maintained that the integration of women into combat formations could create consequences for morale and military effectiveness. A 2004 study examining women’s roles in the armed forces identified CMR as an especially important organization representing people who opposed expanding women’s military opportunities where such expansion was viewed as affecting troop readiness. The organization’s most prominent controversy during the 1990s concerned the Navy career of Lt. Kara Hultgreen and the training records of Lt. Zoe D. Lohrenz. After Hultgreen’s death, Donnelly began circulating confidential records relating to Lohrenz and the Center later issued a report alleging that the Navy had shown favoritism toward one of the first women seeking qualification as a carrier-based combat pilot. Lohrenz’s attorney disputed the Center’s interpretation of the records. Lohrenz subsequently sued for defamation. The court held that, because of her status as one of the first women attempting to qualify as a carrier combat pilot, she was a public figure for purposes of the litigation and therefore had to prove actual malice. She did not meet that standard, and her appeal was denied. The appellate decision expressly stated that the public-figure ruling was not a judgment that Lohrenz was an inadequate aviator or that her professionalism should be discounted. CMR has operated as an advocacy and policy organization rather than as a commercial enterprise. Its activities have included publishing reports, issuing statements, participating in public policy debates, and presenting arguments about military personnel integration. The organization has been described as right-wing by the Southern Poverty Law Center and other commentators. Its reported board or advisory associations have included a number of conservative, military, and public-policy figures, although the supplied sources do not establish which affiliations remain current. In 2011, CMR boycotted the Conservative Political Action Conference because GOProud, an LGBT-oriented organization connected to Republican politics, participated in the event. The boycott demonstrated that the Center’s opposition to LGBT inclusion extended beyond military policy into the broader conservative movement. Its continuing public identity rests on opposition to LGBT military service and on advocacy for narrower roles for women in the armed forces, framed through claims about readiness and operational effectiveness.
- 2011
CPAC boycott
[1]CMR boycotted the Conservative Political Action Conference because GOProud was participating.
- 1995
Navy pilot training controversy
[1]The Center circulated confidential training material and published allegations concerning Navy pilot Zoe D. Lohrenz after the death of Kara Hultgreen.
- 1993
Organization founded
[1]Elaine Donnelly established the Center for Military Readiness during the policy debate surrounding implementation of “Don’t ask, don’t tell.”
Products and positioning
A conservative military-policy advocacy organization that evaluates personnel integration and eligibility policies through the lens of military readiness, unit cohesion, morale, and operational standards.
Policy research
Military personnel-policy reports
CMR produces or has produced reports and written analyses addressing military personnel rules, service eligibility, women’s assignments, combat roles, and the connection between personnel integration and readiness. These publications function as advocacy documents rather than commercial products and are intended for policymakers, journalists, military commentators, and members of the public.
Advocacy
Public advocacy and commentary
The organization communicates its positions through public statements, media engagement, policy commentary, and participation in debates over sexual orientation, gender identity, women’s military service, combat assignments, unit cohesion, and military performance.
Controversies
1995
Publication of material concerning Navy pilot training records
CMR circulated leaked confidential records and issued allegations concerning Navy training and alleged favoritism involving Lt. Zoe D. Lohrenz. Lohrenz disputed the characterization of the records and later sued the Center for defamation.
Marketing campaigns
- 2011CPAC boycott
United States
CMR boycotted CPAC in response to GOProud’s participation in the conference.
- 1993Opposition to expanded LGBT military service
United States
CMR opposed the service of gay and transgender people in the U.S. military and framed its position around readiness, cohesion, morale, and military effectiveness.
- 1990Opposition to expanding women’s military opportunities
United States
The Center advocated limiting the number of women in the armed forces and the positions open to them, especially combat-related assignments.
Brand decisions
2011
Boycott of the Conservative Political Action ConferenceStrategyBackground
GOProud, an LGBT-oriented membership group associated with Republican politics, participated in CPAC.
Action taken
The Center declined to participate in or support the conference.
Aftermath
The boycott highlighted CMR’s opposition to LGBT inclusion within both military policy and the broader conservative movement.
Recent events
- 2011
Center boycotted the Conservative Political Action Conference over GOProud participation[1]
Campaign · Other
CMR declined to participate in CPAC because GOProud, an LGBT membership organization within Republican politics, was included in the conference.
- 1995
Center circulated material concerning Navy pilot training records[1]
Lawsuit · Other
Following the death of pilot Kara Hultgreen, CMR circulated leaked records and published claims alleging favoritism in Navy training involving one of the first women attempting to qualify as a carrier combat pilot.
- 1993
Center for Military Readiness established during the debate over Don’t ask, don’t tell[1]
Other
Elaine Donnelly founded the organization following implementation of the Clinton administration’s military policy governing gay service members.
Lohrenz defamation litigation against the Center for Military Readiness[1]
Lawsuit
Lt. Zoe D. Lohrenz brought a defamation action after CMR published allegations concerning her training. The court ruled that she was a public figure for the case and that the required showing of actual malice had not been established; an appeal was denied.
Sources2 sources
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