The Weekly Show with John Stewart

Two-Party System: Third Parties Need Not Apply

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Episode notes

The first presidential debate is here, and voters do not seem thrilled with the two, very different candidates. How does a consumerist country built on choice produce so few options? This week, helping us to understand our two party system and why third parties don’t work within it, we’re joined by Max Stearns, Law Professor at University of Maryland Carey School of Law, and the author of “Parliamentary America: The Least Radical Means of Radically Repairing Our Broken Democracy,” as well as Sam Rosenfeld, Associate Professor of Political Science at Colgate University, and the co-author, with Daniel Schlozman, of “The Hollow Parties: The Many Pasts and Disordered Present of American Party Politics.” Together, they help us to understand the flaws in how our current system functions and offer some possible remedies going forward.

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Host/Executive Producer – Jon Stewart

Executive Producer – James Dixon

Executive Producer – Chris McShane

Executive Producer – Caity Gray

Lead Producer – Lauren Walker

Producer – Brittany Mehmedovic

Video Editor & Engineer – Rob Vitolo