Happy Thanksgiving! If you’re dreading your family’s impending political feuds over turkey and dinner rolls, we’re here to share an episode that just might help guide you. In August, Osita Nwanevu, a progressive and the author of “The Right of the People: Democracy and the Case for a New American Founding,” joined Ross for a respectful debate about how we should be interrogating the democratic system the country is built on — without yelling or threats.

5:21 - What's wrong with our democracy?
10:43 - Our undemocratic founding
18:36 - The case for more U.S. states and a new constitution
25:27 - Where economic reform fits into this problem
30:54 - Does Trump represent the will of the people?
38:50- What Trump’s presidency says about democracy
42:06 - The elusive Bernie Sanders moment
48:05 - The mystical element of our politics

(A full transcript of this episode is available on the Times website.)

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