Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress—and a Plan to Stop It — Dependence Corruption

Crisis in Perception · Sep 17, 2026 · 44m

What if political corruption does not require corrupt politicians?

Welcome to Crisis in Perception, where we examine the systems shaping our world.

Using Republic, Lost: How Money Corrupts Congress—and a Plan to Stop It by Lawrence Lessig, this episode investigates his concept of “dependence corruption”—the possibility that an institution can be pulled away from its intended purpose when it develops a competing dependency.

Lessig argues that the central problem is larger than bribery or explicit quid pro quo exchanges. Political campaigns require money, legislators devote substantial…