Rot and Reform: An Interview With David Bateman and Julie C. Suk

Traditionally, anniversaries serve two functions. They allow us to take stock of where we are, and they allow us to celebrate what has been accomplished with the passage of time. The 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence is coming at a low point in the country's complex history, which makes the latter feel out of place. Instead, it seemed better to use the opportunity to consider our current condition and think about how to improve it. Julie C. Suk and David Bateman, professors of law and government, respectively, have written extensively and thought deeply about all the ways that U.S. government institutions are not serving us well. We spoke in April about our undemocratic past, our undemo-cratic present, and our possible democratic future.