The Claremonters
One of the three main intellectual camps of the MAGA New Right, per Laura K. Field. The Claremonters are closely networked with the Claremont Institute in Southern California and the political science faculty and administrators at Hillsdale College in Michigan.
Intellectual Lineage
The Claremonters trace their intellectual genealogy through a specific chain:
Leo Strauss → Harry V. Jaffa → Claremont Institute → Michael Anton and others
Strauss (1899–1973) was a German Jewish émigré political philosopher at the University of Chicago, known for his theory of “esotericism” — the idea that great philosophical texts contain hidden meanings accessible only to careful readers. His student Harry V. Jaffa brought Strauss’s method to American politics, arguing that the American founding represented a grand synthesis of biblical, Greek, and modern political thought. Jaffa’s students founded the Claremont Institute in 1979.
This school is called West Coast Straussianism to distinguish it from the “East Coast” Straussians (associated more with neoconservatism) and other Straussian schools. The distinguishing feature is the Claremonters’ intense focus on the American founding as a near-sacred political achievement.
Core Beliefs
Declarationism: The Claremonters appeal not to the text of the Constitution (as originalists do) but to the first principles of the founding as expressed in the Declaration of Independence — “all men are created equal,” natural rights, consent of the governed. They believe these principles can only be recovered through radical, counterrevolutionary change.
The founding as the standard: America’s founding-era thought was, in the Claremonter view, a synthesis of Athens, Jerusalem, and Peoria (as one commentator put it) — biblical political thought, ancient Greek philosophy, and modern political ideas. This makes the American founding exceptional and worth defending, though it has been corrupted.
Crisis mentality: The Claremonters believe that the American republic is in acute crisis — that constitutional order has been corrupted by the administrative state, progressive liberalism, and demographic change. The phrase “knowing what time it is” is their signal that the hour is late and radical action is required.
Counterrevolutionary activism: Unlike purely academic Straussians, the Claremonters are explicitly political. They engage in what Field calls an “Ideas First” approach combined with willingness to use extra-constitutional means if necessary.
Key Figures
- Harry V. Jaffa (1918–2015) — founder of West Coast Straussianism; wrote Goldwater’s 1964 convention speech; author of Crisis of the House Divided
- Michael Anton (“Publius Decius Mus”) — author of The Flight 93 Election; served on Trump’s National Security Council
- Larry P. Arnn — President of Hillsdale College; Claremont Graduate University PhD
- Charles R. Kesler — Professor at Claremont McKenna; editor of Claremont Review of Books; author of Crisis of the Two Constitutions (2021)
- John C. Eastman — Director of Claremont Institute’s Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence; author of the “Coup Memos” advising Pence not to certify the 2020 election
- Thomas Klingenstein — Chairman of the Claremont Institute board; major donor
Aesthetic and Tone
Field describes the Claremonter aesthetic as “youthful, bitter, masculinist, and counterrevolutionary.” JD Vance has spoken at Claremonter events. The movement attracts young conservatives who feel that mainstream conservatism has failed and is looking for a harder, more intellectually serious alternative.
The Claremont Review of Books regularly published Anton’s writings before his identity as “Decius” was revealed. Rush Limbaugh’s viral reading of The Flight 93 Election on September 7, 2016 gave the Claremonters a mass audience.
Relationship to Paleoconservatism
The younger generation of Claremonters also took inspiration from the Paleoconservatives — opponents of Jaffa who disliked his emphasis on equality. Field quotes a historian describing paleocons as “the embittered heirs of failed traditionalism, many with longings for the antebellum South.” This influence has pushed some Claremonters toward an emergent Christian nationalism that Jaffa himself would not have recognized.
The Claremont Institute’s Role in Stop the Steal
On November 4, 2020, the Claremont Institute’s leadership published The Fight is Now, calling on Republicans to fight the election results and hold “huge rallies.” John Eastman authored the “Coup Memos” that provided legal cover for efforts to overturn the 2020 election. This marked the moment the Claremonters’ catastrophism became an active threat to democratic order.
Cross-References
- Leo Strauss — intellectual grandfather
- Harry V. Jaffa — West Coast Straussian founder
- Michael Anton — the movement’s most famous recent figure
- Claremont Institute — institutional home
- Hillsdale College — allied institution
- West Coast Straussianism — the philosophical tradition
- Declarationism — the constitutional approach
- The Flight 93 Election — the movement’s foundational 2016 text
- The Fight is Now — the movement’s 2020 election statement
- Postliberalism — the other major New Right camp
- National Conservatism — the other major New Right camp