Episode description
Matt and Sam explain West Coast Straussianism, the school of thought behind one of the last acts of the Trump administration: its publication of the "1776 Report," the Right's shabby response to the 1619 Project and blueprint for how the American Founding should be understood and taught. What are the origins of this school of conservative thought? Why are its adherents so enthusiastic about Trump? How do they understand the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution, and U.S. history? And why are they obsessed with "identity politics"?
Sources:
Harry Jaffa, "American Conservatism and the Present Crisis," Claremont Review of Books, Spring 2003
Publius Decius Mus, "The Flight 93 Election," Claremont Review of Books, September 2016
Steven Smith, "Hidden Truths," New York Times, August 23, 2013
John J. Miller, "The House of Jaffa," National Review, January 12, 2015
Kathryn and Michael Zuckert, The Truth about Leo Strauss: Political Philosophy and American Democracy (University of Chicago Press, 2006)