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In episode three, we pick up with a president who asked voters to put those complexities aside and unite around removing Donald Trump from office. In early September, Joe Biden kicked off the midterms with a message for the country. He told a familiar story about American democracy, that it's a shared value in trying in the country's founding. But I don't think the story is that simple. We are a constitutional Republican. We are not a democracy. No one in the Constitution does it use the word democracy?

In kicking off the midterms, Joe Biden talked about American democracy as a shared value, enshrined in the country’s founding — a value that both Democrats and Republicans should join together in defending. But there is another possible view of this moment. One that is shared by two very different groups: the voters who propelled Biden to the presidency … and the conservative activists who are rejecting democracy altogether.

“The Run-Up” is a new politics podcast from The New York Times. Leading up to the 2022 midterms, we’ll be sharing the latest episode here every Saturday. If you want to hear episodes when they first drop on Thursdays, follow “The Run-Up” wherever you get your podcasts, including on Apple, Spotify, Google, Stitcher and Amazon Music.