To cap off the first 100 days of his administration, Trump sparred at length with Kristen Welker of NBC’s Meet the Press over his record so far—from immigration successes to choppy economic waters. Alarmed by Trump’s use of emergency powers in rolling out this agenda, David Linker at the New York Times draws some loose connections—to say the least—between Trump, Claremont, and Carl Schmitt. Meanwhile, Shiloh Hendricks has raised over $700 thousand from supporters after a video of her using the n...
May 08, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Ep. 266
As Trump exerts federal pressure from without, the culture of some Ivy League universities may be changing from within—or maybe not , as Harvard seems determined to fight the administration in court. The nation’s elite colleges have been dominated by a Jacobin spirit for decades, and now they seem committed to defending violent radicals. Will their prestige hold? This week, the guys sit down together (in person!) to diagnose the state of America’s universities, elites, and political system at la...
May 01, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 265
Knives are out as Pete Hegseth’s wife is let in on sensitive information about U.S. operations against the Houthis. Amid rumors of staff churn and conflicts within the right over foreign policy, Trump maintains his prudent approach. Meanwhile, on Easter Monday, Pope Francis passed away, spurring an assessment of his legacy and speculations about the future as the Church faces a critical juncture. The hosts discuss Department of Defense crack-ups, the transformation and future of the Catholic Chu...
Apr 24, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 264
A new global order emerges . China grows bolder in the East, while Europe and Canada drift culturally and economically away from America. Will Trump’s tariffs add more chaos to this new multipolar world, or set the U.S. up for success within it? Back home, Kilmar Abrego Garcia’s deportation continues to stir controversy . The guys sit down this week with Ron Dodson, president and portfolio manager of a private fund management firm, to discuss the tariff rollout, American preparedness for future ...
Apr 17, 2025•58 min•Ep. 263
Trump announces a sweeping tariff regime, then pauses it for 90 days —why? As a tactic to renegotiate trade deals? To reshore manufacturing? Some combination of both? With midterms just over the horizon, the stakes of this gamble to reorient global trade are high. Meanwhile, the Supreme Court lifts District Judge Jeb Boasberg’s temporary restraining order on deporting members of the Venezuelan gang Tren De Aragua— what’s next?? Internment camps for U.S. citizens?? This week, the hosts weigh in o...
Apr 10, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 262
Attempting to retroactively set the narrative of U.S. involvement in Ukraine on behalf of the intelligence community, journalist Adam Entous of the New York Times has painfully revealed in his latest piece the utter inability of the Deep State to accept reality at home and abroad. The hosts are joined this week by Claremont senior fellow Jeremy Carl to read between the lines and unpack the previous administration’s obfuscating of wartime details, now made clear, and the turn of public opinion th...
Apr 03, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 261
Atlantic reporter Jeff Goldberg was mistakenly added to a national security group chat, leading to a DC media feeding frenzy—is there anything of substance to be gleaned from this goof? Meanwhile, Jay Bhattacharya—an early opponent of the 2020 lockdowns—was confirmed by the Senate to direct the National Institutes of Health, hopefully marking a turn back to sound health policy. This week, the guys talk through messaging and operations security, Biden-era censorship, plummeting egg prices, and mo...
Mar 27, 2025•59 min•Ep. 260
You’re fired. Trump, by executive order, has moved to terminate federal contracts with law firm Perkins Coie for its role in promoting the 2016 Russiagate conspiracy and otherwise influencing elections —sparking fervorous debate in and across the aisle. Meanwhile, the administration invoked the emergency powers of the Alien Enemies Act of 1798 to deport members of the violent Venezuelan Tren de Aragua gang, provoking an activist judge to obstruct the law’s use. Who rules: Congress or courts? The...
Mar 20, 2025•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 259
First, they came for the green card-holding terror groupies—then they came for...us? Not exactly. But the recent detention of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University protest organizer who fought "for the total eradication of Western Civilization," has prompted cries of fascism. Again. Meanwhile, California governor Gavin Newsom sheds his skin and snakes his way toward the center of the political spectrum: best not be fooled! This week, the guys discuss the antisemitic venom poisoning some young ri...
Mar 13, 2025•59 min•Ep. 258
The Trump administration’s approach to governance presents an opening for a n ew federalism to take hold . S tates may now be incentivized to aggressively take charge of education ; ambitiously compete for businesses planting themselves in the U.S. due to tariffs ; and cut oppressive regulatory red tape . Rounding out the Cincinnatus Series, Ryan Williams sits down with Scott Yenor , Jeffrey Anderson , and Jim Blew to discuss s trateg ies and tools available to policymakers to facilitate economi...
Mar 12, 2025•1 hr 1 min
In his first address to Congress, President Trump goaded Democrats into a limp, performative resistance while he rattled off an impressive list of achievements. Previously, at the White House, Trump had met with Ukrainian President Zelensky in a dramatic confrontation that ultimately helped improve Trump’s position in negotiations over rare earth minerals in exchange for military aid. The guys give their takes on the historic political theater of the past week, discuss the ongoing economic and i...
Mar 06, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 257
Silicon Valley elites have pushed school-provided tablets and phones into K -12 schools , replacing textbooks, real human interaction , and traditional education, undermining children's ability to focus —and parents' power to regulate screentime . Guests Scott Yenor, Freder ick Hess, and Clare Morell sit down with h ost Ryan Williams to consider the limited pros and many cons of devices in the classroom , their disruptive effect in school settings and on learning outcomes, and provide insight in...
Mar 05, 2025•1 hr
The White House has taken charge of issuing press permissions, prompting wails of horror from the White House Correspondents’ Association—but who’s really compromising the media’s authority and independence? Meanwhile, Trump removes Joint Chiefs Chairman C.Q. Brown, to be replaced by retired Lieutenant General John Daniel Caine—prompting further histrionics from the military elite. The hosts discuss Trump’s legitimate authority and the resistance to it, the budget bill making its way through Con...
Feb 27, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 256
Following the social revolution s of decades past , liberal sex education reforms , and the devalu ation of marriage , Conservatives can no longer ignore the soci al aspects of family life — paramount to preserv ing and promot ing the traditional household — and must recognize the use of laws to heal our culture . Host Ryan Williams is joined by Scott Yenor, Kathleen O’Toole, and Chris Bullivant to discuss how states may e mpower parents to raise and school their children , boost fertility and a...
Feb 26, 2025•1 hr
After an Afghan national drove his car into a Munich crowd, J.D. Vance delivered a stern rebuke of the European ruling class. Unsustainable immigration, Islamic extremism, and censorship raise the question whether once-great nations can be relied on as true Western allies. Meanwhile back home, Democrats struggle to decouple from woke, but best not interrupt their mistakes. The guys sit down to talk foreign policy, DOGE’s popularity, and resistance 2.0—plus, recommendations for must-watch shows a...
Feb 20, 2025•1 hr 7 min•Ep. 255
I n vitro fertilization (IVF) has presented a moral dilemma as its processes discard embryos as a matter of course, end ing more lives than even abortion . Emma Waters, Natalie Dodson, and Inez Stepman join host Ryan Williams to discu ss th is and other concerns surrounding IVF: g e netic selection, the creation of human life for profit , the potential use of AI in dictating which embryos live , and more . T hey also raise solutions state legislatures may consider in the process ; possib le cons...
Feb 19, 2025•1 hr 2 min
Elon Musk's DOGE continues to sweep through the bureaucratic minefields, accompanied by the howling of entrenched progressives. Legal battles are surely ahead, which many on the left equate — absurdly — with a constitutional crisis. Meanwhile, the media comes around to what was labeled right-wing conspiracy just months ago: employment data was cherry-picked before the 2024 election to deceive in favor of Biden and Kamala. The hosts discuss this ongoing realignment, a Christian intellectual reviv...
Feb 13, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 254
T ime to tighten the belt. As federal funding scrutiny increases — and with an enrollment cliff fast approaching— state legislators, not internal experts, must take action to put universities under the microscope and ensure faculty hours equate to student academic mastery, promoting attendance . H ost and Claremont Institute president Ryan Williams sits down with returning guest Scott Yenor and is joined by Frederick Hess and Beth Akers of the American Enterprise Institute to continue the discus...
Feb 12, 2025•45 min
Elon Musk’s DOGE helps lead an effort to pull out the rug from under Sri Lankan pronoun education, Vietnamese inclusivity programs, Bolivian transgender operas, and more—with the U.S. Agency for International Development caught in the first sweep. An outrage! Or so say leftists. In retaliation for that and more, the liberal media unearths the qualifications of Musk’s young staff, who turn out to be…educated, accomplished , and competent. Whoops. The guys sit down to talk wasteful spending and ma...
Feb 06, 2025•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 253
Kicking off the Cincinnatus Series, a set of six weekly Roundtable special episodes, Claremont Institute president Ryan Williams is joined by Inez Stepman , Scott Yenor, and David Azerrad to discuss leftist agendas within universities, and the opportunity for state legislatures to pull the reins and reverse course. Among the levers for dismantling the radical ideological infrastructures are the creation of state-controlled accreditation agencies, funding restrictions, and a renewed focus on stud...
Feb 05, 2025•1 hr 2 min
The uphill battle to restore common sense continues with Trump’s executive orders against gender ideology and transition for minors. Meanwhile, a rebellion against the liberal establishment takes joyous shape among normalcy-craving youth. Pinehill Capital president and We the People podcast host Gates Garcia joins the guys to discuss these vibe shifts and the extremely hinged reaction from the Left as they struggle to meet the positivity, branding, and hype of the Right....
Jan 30, 2025•1 hr•Ep. 252
Objective normalcy makes a comeback. In several inauguration speeches, Trump delivered a searing indictment of the elites, a symbolic rebuke to the old order, and a reassertion of American ideals. He followed this up with a barrage of executive orders , including one overturning federal affirmative action. Though these are dramatic actions in one sense, in another they’re just first steps toward restoring the founders’ principled regime. The hosts discuss the first days of Trumps term, the spill...
Jan 23, 2025•1 hr 1 min•Ep. 251
The age of the normie has arrived. As Mark Zuckerberg lifts Facebook’s censorial boot off the neck of its users and moves its moderation team from California to Texas, which seems to signal a sincere tech bro realignment, America is at the dawn of a freer era. Elsewhere in the digital world, conservatives on X discuss the job market: there are two paths, bootstraps or victimhood—what will it be, young man? Plus: The hosts comment on Pete Hegseth’s confirmation hearing and his qualifications, as ...
Jan 16, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Ep. 250
To kick off the new year, the guys open the mail and answer listeners’ questions on everything from cutting back the glut of unaccountable bureaucratic offices to buying Greenland . Meanwhile, Governor Gavin Newsom and the radical conservationists of California, in attempting to create an anti-human environmentalist utopia, have tragically but predictably turned Los Angeles into a literal dumpster fire. It’s a new year, but the laws of hubris and nemesis remain undefeated....
Jan 09, 2025•57 min•Ep. 249
Is that a bird, is that a plane? No, it’s drones! Or aliens? Demons? Iran? The guys take a look up in the sky and down at the public frenzy, which betokens an all-too-real breakdown of trust in government. Democrats, meanwhile, disappointed in Biden for not taking Trump-proofing seriously, float running dud-candidate Kamala again in '28. We're with her! Plus: is it gay to sleep? The hosts close out the podcast this year with a review of 2024, share their Christmas plans, and invite listeners to ...
Dec 19, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 248
The ACLU’s most deranged lawyers try to enshrine kid- transing in United States v. Skrmetti ; a true domestic terrorist assassinates a healthcare CEO; and Syria’s Assad government is toppled by Islamic rebels. The editors are joined by Claremont Institute Lincoln Fellow and p resident of Pinehill Capital Gates Garcia to discuss the poison fruits of DEI and identity politics, the celebration of violence by the Left, and the delicate situation the U.S. faces globally as danger and uncertainty cont...
Dec 12, 2024•1 hr 2 min•Ep. 247
Biden tosses his son Hunter an early but unsurprising Christmas present in the form of a sweeping presidential pardon. In doing so he undermines the moral grandstanding of liberals who claim to be above the fray of political warfare. Simultaneously, and haunted by their pasts, the Democrats struggle to distance themselves from their own extreme rhetoric, administrative chicanery, and hostility to deregulation–leaving the door wide open for Trump’s team to reinvigorate government, detangle intell...
Dec 05, 2024•57 min•Ep. 246
As Biden’s lame duck administration winds down, he—or whoever's in charge—is leaving a few fun parting gifts for the incoming Trump Administration. From escalation in Ukraine, to a re-opened border surprise, to the intractable financial situation, Trump's team will have their work cut out for them. Democrat strategists, however, seem determined not to learn anything from their electoral failure, which bodes well for the future. So the editors remain optimistic—and thankful. Ryan gives a spirited...
Nov 27, 2024•1 hr 16 min•Ep. 245
With a historic second Trump presidency on the way, there's a new vista of possibility just over the horizon. Immigration, trade, and international relations are each in for a major overhaul. But amid the scramble to plan out Trump's first 100 days, there's one critical area that has largely evaded conservative attention: education. Ryan and Spencer are joined by Professor Amy Wax to unpack some of the most efficient ways a Trump administration could reform our broken system from kindergarten on...
Nov 21, 2024•1 hr 4 min•Ep. 244
Trump assembles a notably youthful cabinet of swamp-draining avengers, grinding the gears of the Left. Democrats, meanwhile, face a Hobson’s choice between declining into irrelevancy and admitting they were wrong about Trump all along. Some are taking a sober look at the future while others spiral into BlueAnon conspiracy and outrage, doubling down on race politics despite its failure or getting Lysistrata-pilled and swearing off men. Good luck, we guess?...
Nov 14, 2024•1 hr•Ep. 243
