At a Catholic school in Minneapolis, two children were killed, and many others injured, in a recent shooting at the hands of a transgender individual. The city's mayor Jacob Frey and California governor Newsom took the somber moment to sneer at prayer. This week, the hosts discuss the impact of leftist indoctrination on mental health crises; the mi…

Trump has reached a deal with semiconductor chip maker Intel to land the government a 10% stake in the firm. It’s a potential safeguard against China in an uncertain age but also a potentially troubling intervention into the market. There are also rumblings about sending the National Guard into Chicago, which would really be an error—but maybe it’s…

Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “Land’s End,” Christopher Caldwell’s cover essay on how mass migration has radicalized the United Kingdom, featured in the spring 2025 issue. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com…

The European Union’s crusade to eliminate so-called “harmful speech” has breached America’s digital boundaries. The Digital Services Act effectively gives EU bureaucrats the ability to curb Americans’ constitutional rights, doing away with free speech in today’s online public square. In this Close Read bonus episode, associate editor Spencer Klavan…

This week, the legacy media allowed their hatred for Trump to overrule any desire they may once have had for peace in Ukraine. The president held meetings with Putin, Zelensky, and European leaders, apparently making serious headway toward a conclusion to the war. Meanwhile in Florida this week, illegal immigrant Harjinder Singh allegedly killed th…

Trump invokes the Home Rule Act of 1973 to clean up the nation’s crime-ridden capital, temporarily wresting control of the DC Metropolitan Police from local authorities. He's fed up with the crooks in DC, though what to do with the ones in Congress is anybody's guess. Meanwhile in Canada, medically assisted suicide has spiraled out of control just …

As Texas attempts to redraw districts in Republicans’ favor before the midterms, Democrats skip town to Illinois and threaten nationwide retaliation. But, oops, their states are all already gerrymandered! Meanwhile, in another installment of “men according to women according to the New York Times,” feminists are shocked—shocked!—to meet with the co…

Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “Empire of Music,” Vladimir Golstein’s review of Tchaikovsky's Empire: A New Life of Russia's Greatest Composer, featured in the spring 2025 issue. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com…

Few could have predicted it at the time, but the massive surveillance apparatus designed in the wake of 9/11 to fight terrorism has been turned against Americans in the wake of COVID. The biomedical security state's militarized pandemic response has accustomed Americans to being watched, shepherded, and degraded. Like terrorism, germs are a potenti…

Sydney Sweeney’s latest, mildly provocative ad for American Eagle has prompted a tidal wave of complaints that the campaign is racist for flaunting not just jeans but her (white) genes. Meanwhile, terminally online feminists open another front in their social war, this time against “mankeeping,” a new euphemism for...being nice to men. This week Ma…

Hosts Spencer Klavan and Mike Sabo revisit the 2016 RussiaGate hoax, prompted by new documents just declassified by Director of National Intelligence Tulsi Gabbard. Despite assessments that Russia lacked the capacity to sway elections, Obama and top staffers seem to have directed US intelligence to sabotage then-president Trump. Meanwhile, the Left…

Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “Make Speech Free Again,” John Rosenthal’s essay on how the U.S. can defeat E.U. censorship, featured in the spring 2025 issue. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com…

Mark Twain’s life and work are representative of what it means to be an exceptional American. His writing is earthy, funny, and direct, but also profoundly serious about morality and politics. Contributing editor and repeat guest Christopher Flannery sits down with host Spencer Klavan to discuss this giant of American letters, whose life and legend…

As Joe Biden shuffled toward the finish line of his presidency, he and his staff let off a final volley of pardons—but who was really holding the (virtual) pen? This week, the guys sit down to weigh in on the renewed discussion of autopens as the New York Times reports on a cache of emails that may reveal the truth. Trump, meanwhile, caused a stir …

The hosts are joined this week by Claremont's Vice President of Communications and Beck & Stone co-founder Andrew Beck to recount Vice President JD Vance’s speech at Claremont’s 2025 Statesmanship Award dinner, shining a light on the contradictions of liberals—wealthy, yet vehemently anti-billionaire; white, yet self-deprecating—and discussing the …

New York assemblyman (and amateur rapper) Zohran Mamdani has hit upon a distilled blend of socialism, anticolonialism, and woke omnicausery to secure a Democratic primary win in New York City’s mayoral race. Does his victory signal the party's new direction after months of post-election flailing? Legal policy analyst and friend of the Institute Ine…

Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “They Forgot to Sing,” Anthony Esolen’s review of Poetry as Enchantment, by Dana Gioia, featured in the spring 2025 issue. This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com…

Editor Charles Kesler and Associate Editor Spencer Klavan discuss the newly released spring issue. Kesler’s cover piece, reviewing a biography of William F. Buckley, Jr., gives insight into the life and profound impact of Buckley’s career; the virtues he emanated; and the long-awaited biography by Sam Tanenhaus. William Voegeli chronicles progressi…

The Supreme Court has upheld Tennessee's right—and by extension, the right of other states—to regulate or ban trans medical procedures for children. Meanwhile, Trump’s precision strike against Iranian nuclear enrichment facilities has succeeded in extracting a ceasefire between Israel and Iran. The possibility of diplomacy and peace now exists—but …

In a two-man Roundtable throwback, hosts Spencer Klavan and Mike Sabo offer some initial reaction to Israel’s precision strikes against Iran and the subsequent fallout. Memories of past military failures and fear of Mideast regime change swirl online, but Trump seems prepared to back Netanyahu’s attack on Iranian nuclear capacity. Meanwhile, protes…

This week, special guest Peachy Keenan rounds out the cast with a report from LA, where riots are breaking out (again). Governor Gavin Newsom failed to gain control on the ground, so Trump inserted himself and the National Guard to enforce law and order. Meanwhile, it’s not news that Trump and Elon’s bromance has concluded in a spectacular social m…

Artificial Intelligence threatens to storm the office as tech companies compete to replace entry-level workers with “agent” underlings. Will this be the next major technological displacement in the workforce? And to what end? Meanwhile, this “Pride month” has lacked the eruption of rainbows typical of June. Is a Pride Shift to go along with the Vib…

Michael Anton—newly dubbed “MAGA’s Machiavelli”—gets a profile in The Free Press and some well-deserved recognition. Well-read, well-spoken, and well-dressed, Anton has done more than many realize to shape U.S. policies and political thought in the Trump Era. Meanwhile, Trump seems to sour on Putin and takes flak from some for not catching wise on …

The sad announcement of Joe Biden's advanced cancer diagnosis has thrown fuel onto recriminations and speculations about his condition during his presidency, especially with the publication of a new book on the subject by none other than Jake Tapper. Meanwhile, FBI Director Kash Patel and Deputy Director Dan Bongino, on a Sunday interview with Fox …

As Europe withers and China rises, Trump makes a trip to the Middle East and charts out a new course. In a speech that raised some interventionist hackles, he delivered a sharp critique of nation building and signaled his intentions to approach the region differently. Meanwhile in Washington, a struggle continues to digest the concept of Congress d…