Earl Ravenal

Earl Cedric Ravenal (born 1931) is an American foreign policy analyst, academic, and writer. He is a former distinguished senior fellow in foreign policy studies at the CATO Institute, and professor emeritus of the Georgetown University School of Foreign Service.

Ravenal served as a division director in the Office of United States Secretary of Defense from 1967 to 1969 under Secretaries of Defense Robert McNamara and Clark Clifford.

He was a candidate for the Libertarian Party's presidential nomination in the 1984 election, and finished as runner-up to the party's eventual nominee, David Bergland.