When the first Civil Service Reform Act passed in 1883, “good government” reformers envisioned nonpartisan civil servants fairly administering the federal bureaucracy. From the vantage point of 2016, it is clear this dream has turned into a nightmare. Supposedly nonpartisan administrative agencies have often proven to be anything but. The executive branch increasingly treats agencies like the IRS and the DOJ not as impartial regulators, but as partisan weapons for intimidating political opponents.


This type of abuse raises serious questions about the First Amendment, the power of the administrative state, and the very nature of our government. How can courageous nonprofits fight back against harassment? Will the Courts step in to protect citizens’ right to engage in political activism? How can we resist this kind of administrative tyranny?

Our Partisan Bureaucracy? The IRS, the DOJ, and the Future of Political Activism

Audio from Claremont Institute events, lectures, and broadcasts, including audio-only versions of 'The American Mind' interview show.

News & Politics

Charles Kesler joins “The Seth Leibsohn Show”

Charles Kesler, Claremont Senior Fellow and editor of the Claremont Review of Books, joins The Seth Leibsohn Show to discuss the just-released Winter Issue of the Claremont Review of Books, including his new essay, "2020 Foresight," and Christopher DeMuth's "Trumpism, Nationalism, And Conservatism."

Charles Kesler on NeverTrump and 2020

In this podcast, Dr. Matthew Peterson, our Vice President of Education, is joined by three of America’s leading thinkers on Congress: Dr. Matthew Spalding, Dr. Michael Uhlmann, and Dr. Joe Postell.  
“Welcome everyone, to the American Mind podcast, a production of the Claremont Institute. I’m Ryan Williams, president of the Claremont Institute and publisher of the Claremont Review of Books. This podcast is about ideas, principles, and American politics, usually hosted by yours truly or our vice president of education, Matthew Peterson. Our mission at Claremont has always been the recovery of the American idea—those timeless principles that have made America great since our founding. Visit our website for show notes, essays, editorials, debates, and more at americanmind.org and you can always reach us by e-mailing americanmind@claremont.org. Don’t forget to subscribe to the American Mind on itunes or wherever you get your podcasts, spread the word to your friends and colleagues, and most importantly—thanks for listening.”

–Ryan Williams, President of the Claremont Institute

“I’m Matt Peterson, vice president of Education at the Claremont Institute and Editor of American Mind. Everyone knows that something is wrong with Congress, which is why it has lower approval ratings that either of the other two branches. In fact, as others have pointed out, Congress has a lower approval rating than hemorrhoids, Nickelback, traffic jams, cockroaches, root canals, and colonoscopies. But why, exactly, has Congress ceased to function as the founders intended? And what might be required to restore it back to health? In the following podcast, I explore these questions with three of the top minds on Congress in the nation. Dr. Matthew Spalding and Dr. Michael Uhlmann are Claremont Institute senior fellows with graduate degrees from Claremont University, and Dr. Joe Postell runs the annual panels the Claremont Institute sponsors at the American Political Science Association. In fact, this podcast was recorded with a few drinks in hand at the 2018 APSA Conference, after a panel entitled: ‘What’s the Matter with Congress?’ Enjoy.”

–Matthew Peterson, Vice President of the Claremont Institute

The American Mind, Episode 1: What's the Matter With Congress?

In a recent op-ed for the New York Times, Charles Kesler, Claremont Senior Fellow and editor of the Claremont Review of Books (CRB), argues that most of President Trump’s alleged transgressions offend against the etiquette of modern liberal governance, not the Constitution. Dr. Kesler joins The Seth Leibsohn Show to discuss why breaking norms will renew democracy, not ruin it.

Charles Kesler on Donald Trump Breaking Presidential Norms—8/23/18

Dr. John Eastman, founding director of Claremont's Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence, analyzes Trump's selection of Judge Brett M. Kavanaugh to fill Justice Anthony M. Kennedy’s seat on the Supreme Court.

At the 6:05 minute mark, Dr. Eastman specifically evaluates the nomination in the context of the administrative state.

"One of the major fights in the Supreme Court right now, and my own Supreme Court litigation center has been on the forefront of this fight, is pushing back against unelected bureaucrats in administrative agencies that are basically ruling our lives, from morning to night, cradle to grave, without any legal authority.

"These administrative law doctrines that have developed over the last number of decades are finally being called into question. One of the things that stands out about Brett Kavanaugh’s career on the D.C. Circuit Court of Appeals is his willingness to question some of those doctrines as a violation of core constitutional separation of powers principles. That is where a very big fight is going on in the Supreme Court right now, and I think that may well have tilted the scale in his favor on the nomination."

Our Partisan Bureaucracy? The IRS, the DOJ, and the Future of Political Activism

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