The Brion McClanahan Show Podcast

Most Americans probably think that contentious political debates from the early 19th century don’t have any relevance to modern American society. Take for example the Old Republican opposition to “federally funded internal improvements.” We have virtually abandoned any opposition to such expenditures. Just look at the massive amount of federal cash the Congress just authorized for the “infrastructure” bill. No one questions if this is …more

Following Charlemagne’s death in the 9th century, most Frankish kings did not have grand titles. The Franks became very good at naming kings for their shortcomings: Charles the Bald, Charles the Fat, Louis the Sluggard. This continued into the modern era. Francis I was known as “Francis the Big Nose.” Perhaps we should adopt this practice in the United States. The Vice-Presidency is an irrelevant …more

Anyone who has listened to my Podcast or read my material knows I am hard on most “establishment” historians, and for good reason. They don’t do much that is worthy of any accolades, let alone the prestigious awards some of them are handed annually. You might say to yourself, “McClanahan, you are just jealous they aren’t reading your stuff.” Nope. Most of these people are …more

If you’ve been caught up in the Kyle Rittenhouse trial (found not guilty on all counts), you might have missed one of the most bizarre news stories in recent years. So many States have sued over Joe Biden’s vaccine mandate that the justice department had to use a lottery to select which federal circuit court would hear the case. You read that right. We are …more

If you listen to the neoconservatives like Allen Guelzo or the talking stiffs at Fox News, the North heroically saved the United States from the evil South and ushered in a new birth of freedom in America. Guelzo goes so far as to thump his chest and proclaim that he is a Yankee of the highest order, meaning that he carries no guilt for the …more

Over the weekend, woke leftist “scholar” Nikole Hannah-Jones made some comments about the atomic weapons strike on Japan in 1945. She said felt “shame” when visiting Hiroshima and thought of the “fascism” in the American South. When some people challenged her, she wrote this: Her stupidity is boundless, but this brings up an interesting historical debate. Did the bomb end the war in the Pacific? …more

Leftist legal scholar Saul Cornell has made a career on the Second Amendment. His claim to fame comes from several articles and one major book on the origins of the right to “keep and bear arms.” Most important, Cornell thinks that this right can be limited by government, and that the history of firearms possession in England and Great Britain supports his claim. Cornell is …more

A listener asked me to name the best book on the Revolution of 1800. If you don’t know what I am talking about, this was Jefferson’s victory–and a Republican sweep–in the 1800 election. The Federalists were sent packing and the Republicans took power. It has been described as a bloodless revolution, as nothing short of the 1688 Glorious Revolution in England. That “revolution” was bloodless, …more

Asking if voting is a right is almost blasphemy in modern American society. We believe in democracy! Everyone should vote! But as a great piece at Chronicles highlights, you can make it “easy to vote” OR you can make it “hard to cheat.” You can’t have both. To those on the left, making it “easy” to vote means that they can ballot harvest or dig …more

Glenn Youngkin’s victory in the Virginia Governor’s race has spurred some to believe that Americans have thoroughly rejected critical race theory. Not so fast. While I agree that wokism may have reached its zenith and most Americans don’t like it, I’m not certain the soccer moms who have been labeled FBI terrorists aren’t on board with most of what critical race theory has to offer. …more