A Plea for the Public Lands
Tuesday, July 21 2026
On July 13, 2026, President Trump issued orders reducing Bears Ears and Grand Staircase-Escalante national monuments for a second time. Grand Staircase-Escalante was reduced by approximately 1.69 million acres, representing a 90% reduction of the monument's land area, shrinking its total size from roughly 1.87 million acres to 181,541 acres. Bears Ears National Monument was reduced from 1.36 million acres to 121,100 acres.
- Published in Features
Is There an Answer to American Decline?
Monday, July 13 2026
Recently, I wrote about what is great about America at 250. This week, I reflect on what I see as palpable American decline. I do not enjoy criticizing America, but if we don’t, on our 250th birthday, step back to reflect on what we have achieved, how we got here, what remains unresolved, and where we seem to be headed, when will we do so?
- Published in Features
Views of the American Dream From Milan, Italy
Monday, July 06 2026
Surprisingly, I did not spend the Fourth of July in America this year. But being thousands of miles away made the promise of our exceptional nation clear.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road
Happy 250th Birthday, America
Tuesday, June 30 2026
As much as the United States confronts monumental challenges, there is much to celebrate as the nation turns 250.
- Published in Features
History in Context: Thomas Jefferson on War
Monday, June 22 2026
Thomas Jefferson’s view of war was shaped by a deep study of history and hope for a new path for a young American nation.
- Published in Features
Crazy Horse and His Massive Memorial in South Dakota’s Black Hills
Thursday, June 18 2026
Clay shares his thoughts on the Crazy Horse Memorial begun in 1948, a privately funded monument under construction in the Black Hills of South Dakota. The monument depicts Oglala Lakota warrior Crazy Horse on horseback, pointing toward his tribal lands. Once completed, it will be the largest mountain carving in the world, at 641 feet long, 563 feet high — larger than nearby Mount Rushmore.
- Published in Features
Planning America’s 25th Anniversary Celebration — Long Lost Document Discovered?
Monday, June 15 2026
Researchers at the National Archives recently made a startling discovery, uncovering a portion of a document that appears to discuss event planning for America’s 25th Anniversary.
- Published in Features
In a Far Corner of Colorado: One Chapter in the Great Dispossession
Monday, June 08 2026
A recent visit to northwest Colorado reminds me of the paradox of Manifest Destiny and our American history.
- Published in Features
My Close Encounter With Devils Tower
Tuesday, June 02 2026
I’ve loved Devils Tower since I first close encountered it four decades ago. President Theodore Roosevelt established Devils Tower as the nation's first National Monument in September 1906. Roosevelt would establish 18 National Monuments during his two terms. Today we have 138.
- Published in Features
Wind Cave National Park
Tuesday, June 02 2026
Our roving humanities scholar Clay S. Jenkinson is typically dedicated to the truth and nothing but the truth, but his visit to Wind Cave National Park seems to have addled his brain. No other visitor on his recent tour reported meeting Dante and Virgil at the Seventh Circle of the cave.
- Published in Dispatches from the Road