Ten years ago, NYU political scientists Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith wrote "The Dictator's Handbook," which posited that all political leaders — from autocrats to democratically-elected officials — are governed by an uncomfortably similar set of rules and incentives. We thought now’s the perfect time to take a fresh look at their model and re-learn the dos and don’ts of political power. We discuss the Trump presidency, the Electoral College, voter fraud, jolly old Putin, and a variety of delectable topics to get you revved up and ready for election day.

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[5:55] The basic principles of the theory

[13:00] Democracies & Dictatorships, a sliding scale

[19:56] It’s a mess, but we’re course-correcting

[23:05] The problem with the Electoral College (it’s not what you think)

[29: 21] All leaders want to shrink their coalition (on gerrymandering, sore loser laws, and Tanzania)

[33:05] The people push back

[35:25] How vote fraud actually happens

[37:45] On social media (the information/disinformation arms race)

[49:21] Universities are not democracies

[54:46] Which companies win, which commit fraud

[1:00:31] What we get wrong about foreign aid (the Petro-State Problem}

[1:006:31] The liberalizing myth

[1:08:44] The issue with inequity in democracy

[1:14:00] A Yang gang post-script