Guest Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, a political scientist, discusses his latest book on the invention of power. Topics include the impact of the Concordat of Verms on secular rulers and the church, wealth disparities in Europe, winning coalitions and power dynamics within the Catholic Church, future research recommendations, game theory models for power dynamics, the concept of a 'cut point' for democracy, and the stability of different countries and theories of stable democracies.

Bruce Bueno de Mesquita, Professor of Politics at NYU and Senior Fellow at Stanford University's Hoover Institution, discusses the incentives facing dictators and democratic leaders. He applies his insights to foreign aid, the Middle East, Venezuela, China's potential for evolution to a democratic system, and Cuba. He emphasizes the importance of freedom of assembly and freedom of the press for true democracy.