Allum Bokhari

What is your current position?

I’m the senior technology correspondent at Breitbart News and author of DELETED: Big Tech’s Battle to Erase the Trump Movement and Steal the Election.

What inspired you to choose this career path?

Like most things today, it all goes back to 2014, when a bunch of feminists tried to mess with video games.

What are you currently working on?

Informing the public about the vast depth and breadth of power that our effete technological overlords currently exert over us.

How did you hear about the Claremont Institute?

Not through Google. Don’t use Google. Never use Google. Not even once.

What is your fondest memory of the Claremont Institute?

It’s hard to choose as all of the material was so good, but Heather MacDonald’s lecture really stood out, particularly given that it came just after the summer riots. I think I remember standing up and clapping.

There are all sorts of educational programs out there for current and rising conservative professionals. What do you think makes the Claremont Institute’s Fellowships unique?

You won’t hear about BAP and Curtis Yarvin at the other ones.

Who would it be, why, and what would you discuss, if you could have a conversation with an American Founder, or any great thinker?

“So this thing about everyone being born equal, do you think that might be uhhhh, open to misinterpretation?”

Who was more important for their time, George Washington or Abraham Lincoln? Why?

A difficult choice. Washington presided over the creation of a system that has stood the test of time. But Lincoln threw journalists in jail, and at this moment in time, you really gotta respect that.

What would the artifact be, if you could hold one piece of history from the early founding of the United States and why?

Obviously the Knights Templar / freemason treasure, but I think Nicolas Cage got to it first.

What do you think it will take for this nation to realize our founding principles are at a definitive crossroads?

When a nuclear power plant fails because one or more nuclear engineers obtained their qualifications through diversity quotas.

What qualities do you believe will make outstanding statesmen/women in this century?

The ability to thrive in a decadent regime without growing too loyal or attached to it.

What amendment to do believe is in the most danger of being lost and why?

Obviously the First. The Second is under threat too, but Americans own 20 million AR-15s so good luck getting rid of it in practice. Ultimately, however, the problem at the heart of American politics is not so much any particular amendment, but rather the “rival constitution” of the 1960s that Christopher Caldwell described in Age of Entitlement.

What do you believe has led to our established culture redefining itself in the 21st Century?

The mainstream media.

When researching controversial topics what regimen do you follow in order to make sure your end result is based on fact not noise?

As the Federalists and Anti-Federalists understood, anonymity is the ally of reason and honest debate, allowing people to speak without fear of retribution. Those who seek the truth should begin their journey in those dissident corners of the internet where anonymity still reigns.

Please share your views on what can be done to rein in big tech.

With Democrats in control of the House and the White House, there’s not a whole lot that can be done. Any proposal to “rein in big tech” coming from Congress or the White House should be treated with great suspicion at the moment.

The Journalism Competition and Preservation Act is a perfect example. It would grant big media companies – already the beneficiaries of Big Tech favoritism – an even stronger bargaining position in relation to the tech companies, allowing them to form a cartel that would otherwise be illegal under antitrust law. That terrible piece of legislation almost got bipartisan support, because Democrats convinced some of their Republican colleagues that it would “rein in big tech.”

Unless the Supreme Court makes a big ruling – and Clarence Thomas’ opinions on this are very promising – the area with the most promise over the next few years is alternative tech. People are working on alternative social media platforms, alternative cloud hosting, even alternative smartphones. It’s no substitute for the industry-wide regulation that’s needed, but it could still have a big impact.

When the spirt of the age seems to resist reason how do we proceed?

That’s the spirit of every age. Feelings have never cared about facts. Whether you want to build a society based on lies or a society based on truth, you still have to obtain and wield power effectively. In a system with universal suffrage, that means learning how to build a movement, which can only be done by influencing popular sentiment.

What book, speech, or movie has left a lasting impression with you and why?

Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, the most criminally underrated of the Star Wars movies. Critics complained that its depiction of the galaxy’s political system was too granular and boring, but it was actually a highly prescient analysis of late-stage republics.

The first half of the movie consists of a local ruler’s attempt to reach the Senate – the ruling legislative body of the galaxy – to inform them that her planet has been invaded by a rogue corporate faction. When she gets to the senate, she discovers that the rogue corporate faction (all of whom, curiously, have Chinese accents) has the Senate completely bought and paid for, and that the real rulers of the galaxy consist of a bureaucratic deep state, not the elected Chancellor who she had hoped to win over.

The only glimmer of hope in this decrepit and decaying system is an ambitious senator called Sheev Palpatine who promises to actually use his power (imagine an elected leader actually using his power!) to sweep away the corrupt special interests. Based Sheev!

What books are you currently reading?

Political Management of the Bureaucracy: A Guide to Reform and Control by Don Devine.

Don Devine was dubbed “Reagan’s terrible swift sword” by the press, on account of the scorched-earth campaign he waged against the federal bureaucracy. If you don’t want to watch the Phantom Menace, Devine’s book is a good primer on the power of unelected officials, staffers, and bureaucrats. It is a good reminder to judge Presidents and other elected officials not just by their deeds and words, but by the advisers and staffers they choose to rely on.

Do you have a favorite quote? Why does it resonate with you?

Oliver Cromwell’s 1653 speech dismissing Parliament. That dude did not hold back.

What is the most distinctive attribute/character of the people in England that you genuinely admire?

There is a general disdain for extremism in English culture that has proven a reliable – though not impenetrable – guard against the irrational ideologies of every era. Ideological fads do influence the English, but not with the same intensity as many other countries.

What is your favorite cultural/recreational pastime (or hobby) and why?

I’m a Gamer.

Where do you see yourself in ten years?

A political refugee in a Slavic country