As required by the Constitution, the president of the United States is elected not by the national popular vote but by the vote of the Electoral College. In the Electoral College, each state receives as many votes as it has members of Congress. Because every state has two senators and is guaranteed at least one House member, votes of small states count more heavily than votes of large states. Has the Electoral College served the nation well? Or should it be abolished and replaced by a system in which every vote counts the same? Peter Robinson speaks with Jack Rakove and Tara Ross

The Democratic candidate owes America some answers

How an overconcern with security can distort the face America shows the world. By Josef Joffe.

Following the recent appearances of retired Lieutenant General Michael Flynn at the Republican National Convention in Cleveland and retired General John Allen at the Democratic National Convention in Philadelphia, retired General Martin Dempsey, former Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, admonished retired senior leaders not to endorse political candidates. “As generals, they have an obligation to uphold our apolitical traditions,” Dempsey wrote. Through the broad sweep of American history, however, the “apolitical traditions” of the military are hardly clear-cut.

What happens when South Korean students take a close look at American democracy. By Peter Berkowitz.

Bernadette Malone on neglected conservative gains

Revisiting the founding father to whom a national debt, properly funded, represented “a national blessing.” By Michael W. McConnell.