The American Mind Podcast

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Ayatollah 2: Electric Boogaloo Mar 11, 2026

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Following the joint US-Israel airstrike on the Ayatollah Khamenei, the late dictator’s son, Mojtaba Khamenei, has been picked successor by the regime. The Trump administration has begun to signal its objectives, goalposts and exit plan—but is victory clearly defined yet? Meanwhile, a failed terror attack targeting a protest in New York signals cascading effects back home. This week, hosts Spencer Klavan and Mike Sabo talk through the latest in the war on Iran and its potential implications for the American Right’s internal conflicts, including 2028 prospects for J.D. Vance and Marco Rubio.

On Iran, Vance Balances Between Trump and the Anti-Intervention Right

Leo Strauss and American Foreign Policy

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California versus Parents ft. Eric Wessan Mar 05, 2026

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com

California’s radical law, forbidding schools and teachers from reporting students' gender dysmorphia and transgender treatments to parents, has just been shot down by the Supreme Court. Eric Wessan, Claremont alum and Solicitor General at the Iowa Office of the Attorney General, joins host Spencer Klavan to discuss the parental rights victory, touch on …

No More No More War Mar 04, 2026

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The Ayatollah Khameini is dead in a missile strike. The U.S. and Israel are effectively at war with Iran. Trump and his administration, hawkish on Iran, pursue peace through force with Operation Epic Fury. This week, the guys sit down to hash out the military and trade implications in the Mideast region, and the quagmire of political considerations back home—including presidential powers and an impotent Congress at the forefront. Europe’s response, meanwhile, betrays its continued decline and unreliability.

Recommended:

Trump Was Always an Iran Hawk

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Overthrowing Nixon ft. James Rosen Feb 27, 2026

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Chief Washington Correspondent at Newsmax James Rosen sits down this week with Claremont Institute president Ryan Williams to discuss the deep state's involvement in the operation to bring down President Nixon. Informing the discussion are never-before-seen files sourced by Mr. Rosen: a spy ring directed by three-letter intelligence agencies, collaborat…

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com/subscribe

State of the Union: We Are So Back Feb 26, 2026

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com

President Trump took to the podium to deliver the first State of the Union address of his second term Tuesday night. His appraisal: we are so back. Transparency is back, and so are affordability, education, homeownership, and more. On this exclusive Roundtable episode, hosts Ryan Williams and Mike Sabo sit down to discuss the merits of Trump’s speech, t…

The Trump Tariffs Go to Court Feb 25, 2026

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The Supreme Court ruled 6-3 last week that the International Economic Emergency Powers Act does not give the president authority to impose tariffs—Alito, Kavanaugh, and Thomas dissenting. The administration now scrambles to implement its tariff policies as appeals and new legislation proceed. Meanwhile, America counts its treasures as the Winter Olympics close out: 12 gold medals, one among them won by the daughter of a Chinese refugee to the States. Go us! Plus: the AI overlord of the 7,000-strong Roomba army, and more.

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This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com/subscribe

Rubio Looks to the West Feb 19, 2026

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Following on from J.D. Vance’s bracing speech in 2025, Secretary of State Marco Rubio called on European allies to resist the managed decline of the West at the 2026 Munich Security Conference this week. The welfare state is a slow moving trainwreck. Appeasement of climate cultists stunts economies. Mass migration threatens to disrupt our civilization. Playing good cop to the VP’s bad cop, Rubio outlined America's vision to revive the spirit and strength of the shared Western project. Plus: The guys discuss the Left’s compassion fatigue, Hungary’s coming election, and the legacy of the late Dr. Mickey Gene Craig: teacher, mentor, and friend.

George Washington’s Farewell Address

Hungary and the Future of Europe

Why Hasn’t Brexit Happened?

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com/subscribe

Our New Robot Overlords Feb 12, 2026

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This is a free preview of a paid episode. To hear more, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com

Kicking off the Roundtable’s premium interview series, our AI chatbot—sorry, host, Spencer Klavan is joined by Claremont Institute president Ryan Williams to discuss the strange symptom of late-stage modernity that is AI maximalism. The technology, which excels as a task manager and mathematician, lacks humanity—consciousness, morality, and soul. But its potential use as a tool to run government may prove painfully seductive to the modern mind, and equally disastrous.

Bad Bunny, Worse Politics Feb 11, 2026

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Superbowl LX went to the Seahawks, but the halftime show went to Puerto Rico with musician Bad Bunny, who performed almost entirely in Spanish (except, of course, when he took a dig at America's right to call itself America). The production targeted normie TV viewers with a joyous, positive aura—all while subtly communicating a leftist message of globalization. Was this a stroke of genius, or is Bad Bunny already cringe? Meanwhile, California continues to spiral, expropriating its top earners mob-boss style through aggressive taxes and de facto wealth confiscation. Will the Right rally around its own positive message, and go toe-to-toe with the Left? Plus: Show changes and a new, premium offering to come Thursday!

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com/subscribe

The Mini-Bus, the Short Bus, and the Clown Car Feb 05, 2026

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The recent government shutdown standoff has reached an end but, in yet another stage of the war against immigration enforcement, only temporary funding for Homeland Security has been passed. Democrats now aim at sweeping ICE reforms, Republicans at pushing through the SAVE Act requiring national voter ID—and dropping the Senate filibuster ahead of the midterms. Meanwhile, a New York jury has awarded $2 million in damages to a detransitioner who went through Female-to-Male “gender affirming care” at 16. Digging at the roots of malpractice and overdiagnosis and with a surgeon and psychologist on the hook, could the case signal the beginning of the end of trans-mania?

This is a public episode. If you'd like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit claremontinstitute.substack.com/subscribe

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