The Claremont Institute is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization that relies on the support of individual donors to continue its work. Gifts to the Claremont Institute are tax-deductible to the fullest extent allowed by law. If you’d prefer to make your donation via check, please click the button below and mail the completed form to PO Box 39, Claremont, CA 91711.
The ideas of the American Founding, expressed most succinctly in the opening paragraphs of the Declaration of Independence, and defended most eloquently by Abraham Lincoln, are not just nostalgic, beautiful ideas—they are powerful ideas. They drove the Revolution and the Founding in the 1700’s; what Lincoln called “a new birth of freedom” in the 1800’s; and the defeat of socialist and fascist tyrants in the 1900’s.
Today, they are as powerful as ever, because they are a true account of the best regime—that is, the way of life and governance for a free people. That is why these ideas are maligned and distorted at every opportunity by America’s foes, both internal and external. But it is also why these ideas inspire the devotion of true-hearted Americans—like you—who stand up to defend her.
Our mission at the Claremont Institute is to restore the principles of the American Founding to their rightful, preeminent authority in our national life. We wade into the battle of ideas with high spirits and good cheer, encouraged to know that we do so with your fellowship and support. We could not do our work without you.
Thank you for your support!
"*" indicates required fields
Our Programs
Publius, Lincoln, John Marshall, Speechwriters, and Sheriffs Fellowships
We educate the best and most promising young writers, lawyers, activists, academics, entrepreneurs, and public servants through our annual Publius, Lincoln, John Marshall, Speechwriters, and Sheriffs Fellowship programs, engaging this next generation of conservative leaders in a life-long study of the true principles of government and their application to today’s policies. Each fellowship is designed for a different audience, but all are equal in their intense curriculum of daily seminars and relaxed evening symposia examining the historical arc leading from the American Founding to the progressivism of today.
The Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence (CCJ)
The mission of the Center for Constitutional Jurisprudence is simple but vital: to restore the constitutional protections created by our Founding Fathers. This means fighting to uphold the Constitution’s guarantees of natural rights as well as working to restore the Constitution’s structural protections of our liberty, such as the separation of powers, the non-delegation doctrine, and enumerated powers. The Center undertakes litigation to place Originalist, natural law-based arguments in front of state and federal courts in strategic cases that will have an impact far beyond the immediate issue. Our involvement in these cases ranges from direct representation of clients to compelling, painstakingly-researched amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) briefs, from the lower appellate courts to the U.S. Supreme Court.
The Claremont Review of Books (CRB)
The Claremont Review of Books, our flagship publication, is recognized as the source above all others for penetrating analysis and clarifying perspective in political matters. Its aim is to reinvigorate the public mind by returning to the first principles of a distinctively American conservatism, and to elevate the public discourse through a serious examination of the ideas, statesmanship, and cultural currents that have shaped the political and social life of America and the West. Under the leadership of Founding Editor Charles Kesler and some of the most impressive and respected minds writing on politics and policy today, the CRB has been called a graduate education in itself. Drawing from the deep well of American political thought and Western civilization, each issue takes time to read and digest. We seek to elevate the public discourse, and in our best moments, we have succeeded.
The American Mind (TAM)
An online-only publication and podcast dedicated to the ideas that drive our political life, The American Mind brings in audiences looking for deeper discussion and consideration of the ideas behind the news cycle. While eschewing the deceptive pandering which many online publications engage in to attract views, it plunges into the cut-and-thrust of America’s political crisis with more immediacy and energetic expression than is possible in the CRB’s quarterly format. The continuing shake-up of what was once called the conservative movement has revealed a great deal of ruin, with signs of repentance in some quarters and a turn to perniciousness in others. The American Mind is dedicated to driving the reformation of the political agenda at the highest level by applying founding principles to regime-level questions about governance, citizenship, nationhood, and statecraft in a digital age.
The Center for the American Way of Life (CAWL)
The Center for the American Way of Life works to contest the Left’s capture (and the conservative establishment’s surrender) of the country’s major institutions—ranging from the political bureaucracy, universities, and K-12 education to the press, Big Tech, and Fortune 500 companies. CAWL’s goal is to disrupt the Left’s unified front, and boldly attack their doctrine of “wokeism”—a toxic stew of Marxist-adjacent ideologies that is also an outgrowth of America’s flawed civil rights regime. This includes radical feminism, the identity politics of “anti-racism” (which is actually racism), and globalism.
Lectures and Conferences
Across the country, the Claremont Institute provides the scholarship and platforms necessary to fill in the gaps to help Americans understand the ideas that birthed our great nation—ideas that provide the only sure path to reform and the preservation of the American way of life. Since opening our Washington, DC office in 2016, we have hosted a wide array of events for alumni of our Fellowship programs, as well as policymakers, members of the press, and the public at large. The Claremont Institute also continues to serve as a bastion of distinctively American conservatism on the West Coast, where it is sorely needed. In addition to debates, panel discussions, book launches, and private salons, we also host our Annual Gala and our Constitution Day event each year.
American Political Science Association (APSA) Panels
On Labor Day weekend each year, the Claremont Institute hosts roughly twelve panels over the course of four days at APSA, the country’s largest convention of political science professors. APSA is one of the main ways that the vast majority of conservative academics know the Claremont Institute. Scholars know that we facilitate a vigorous and open forum where Claremont scholars can partner with and engage others intelligently, civilly, and productively. Whatever the defects of modern relativistic professional political science, its largest annual conference remains an important clearinghouse in the national battle of ideas. We focus on the study of American politics, political philosophy, and statesmanship, and our panels are consistently some of the best-attended sessions at the conference.
Continuing Education and Career-Building Assistance for Fellows
The Claremont Institute hosts a wide array of events for alumni of its Fellowship programs, policymakers, engaged citizens, and members of the press on the east coast. These alumni events keep our Publius, Lincoln, John Marshall, and Speechwriters Fellows engaged with Claremont’s work long after their Fellowship programs have ended. Whether we are hosting a formal dinner and discussion or a more casual get-together, our alumni events provide Fellows with a chance to continue their education in the principles of the Founding and their application. By bringing our Fellowship alumni together regularly in our nation’s capital, we also facilitate continued networking and collaboration between friends and peers working to restore limited government and constitutionalism.
