Dispatches from the Late Republic

Michael Anton, a prolific polymath whose interests (like his career) weaves in-and-out of public and private life, is known primarily for being the most influential political philosopher and policy strategist of the Trump Era. Through examining a wide range of topics from his “motherland” of California to the intellectuals at The Claremont Institute who influenced his thinking, Anton invites the reader to understand the nature of the American regime and share his burdened love for America itself. As of 2024, Anton serves as the 33rd Director of Policy Planning at the State Department. Anton offers insights into the international order through musings on George Kennan (the first who held this position), containment, nuclear war, and an America First foreign policy doctrine—which President Trump said Anton has “defined.” An observer and authority on fashions and taste, Anton prepares a feast for the reader, touching on subjects ranging from Anthony Bourdain and the culinary world, Olympic swimming, the golden age of shipbuilding, and his literary hero, novelist Tom Wolfe. Though lauded for his contributions to intellectual and political discourse, the essays collected in this volume show the heart, not merely the mind, of the singular Michael Anton.