The Close Read Podcast

As Trump’s presidency enters its latter half, will the administration stay on course where others have floundered? Editor Charles Kesler and associate editor Spencer Klavan meet live and in-person to discuss the new CRB. They are joined by Salvatori Fellow Glenn Ellmers to focus in on his latest piece, “The Big Three,” about Trump’s potential rank as a world historic figure. As midterms loom large in the national conversation, the conversation turns to what comes next for America’s Right. Plus: Leonard Sax on the negative influence of A.I. on adolescent girls and boys, William Voegeli on the disappointing legacy of Obama’s regime, and more! 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

Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads his piece, “Fightin’ Words,” featured in the Claremont Review of Books’ Fall 2026 issue. 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

Lane Scott joins Associate Editor Spencer Klavan to discuss her latest piece, “Cowboys and Carpetbaggers,” featured in the new Fall 2026 issue. The bitter domestication of America’s West during the 19th century, commemorated in Larry McMurtry’s Lonesome Dove, offered opportunities for rugged conquest but also posed a challenge to civilized family life. Today, Taylor Sheridan’s hit show Yellowstone demonstrates that the longing and the tension remains even in our hyper-civilized age. Can the men of America find their happily ever after? 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

Associate Editor Spencer Klavan reads “Red and Dead,” Daniel J. Mahoney’s essay featured in the Claremont Review of Books’ Summer 2026 issue. 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

American schools are failing society. Illiteracy is rampant while progressive ideology overrides traditional curricula. Social studies, history, and civics are all captured by people and organizations devoted to anti-American revisionism. Mark Bauerlein, First Things contributing editor and Emeritus Professor of English at Emory University, outlines the dangers of teaching students to hate their country before they understand it in his latest CRB piece, “Saving Civics.” Can Americans recover a shared canon and a moral core? 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