随着总统大选的临近，让我们回顾一下过去关于选举、民主和政治的一些故事。我们认为，你会发现这些讨论在今天仍然具有多么重要的意义。

During the last presidential election, we took a step back from the horse race to examinethree broader issues与美国选举制度有关的:投票的义务、两党制以及金钱对政治的影响。这些都与这次的危机无关，即使它们与今年的危机相比显得微不足道。

A decade earlier, John and Ken recorded an episode on Capitol Hill with Stanford Law Professor Kathleen Sullivan about some of the basic architecture of the American government, namely theSeparation of Powersinto three co-equal branches of the federal government.

More recently, John and Ken spoke to renowned political scientist Francis Fukuyama about thecrises in our political systemthat not only pre-date those associated with the current administration but could be traced back to the very design of our democracy.

One issue that's received more attenton in recent years, especially since the Supreme Court'sCitizens Uniteddecision in 2010, involves the influence ofcorporations on our political system. In 2012 John and Ken spoke with former U.S. Senator Russ Feingold to find out just what effects the modern corporation has on our democracy.

In 2016, John and Ken explored some of the ideals still present in American political thought, more specifically the philosophy ofJohn Dewey, who was the single most influential American philosopher during his lifetime.

We also include for your consideration abrief except from Ken’s book,Farewell to the Republic We Once Dreamt Of,as a blog entry; a link to his article,The Will of the People, in which he advocates for the abolition of the electoral college; and a link to a video recording of a half day conference onTrump, Philosophy, and American Politics肯和其他人对共和国的现状敲响了警钟。这一切都值得一听，但如果你想跳到肯的那部分，它大约在1点57分开始。

Happy listening, and please share your thoughts with us in the comments section below!