Debate: Authoritarianism and the American Right
On Tuesday, May 14, the Center for the National Interest hosted a debate between Jacob Heilbrunn, editor of The National Interest and author of the new book America Last: The Right’s Century-Long Romance With Foreign Dictators, and Curt Mills, editor of The American Conservative. Heilbrunn’s book contends that like the Left, the Right has a long history of upholding foreign autocrats as models for America, culminating in praise for Russian president Vladimir Putin and Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban.
Mills, a former staff reporter for U.S. News and World Report, regularly appears on Fox News and other outlets. In a recent “In the National Interest” podcast episode, he and Heilbrunn discussed the GOP’s reluctance to aiding Ukraine and the rise of the MAGA movement. The American Conservative has also published “Facts Last: Jacob Heilbrunn Returns to the Neocons,” a critical review of America Last.