On April 18, I had the pleasure of attending a Braver Angels Common Ground workshop on Immigration in David Joyce's 14th congressional district. This event demonstrated deliberative democracy and courageous citizenship at its best. Eight "reds" and eight "blues", representing a wide range of viewpoints, openly and constructively shared their concerns and values regarding immigration, and reached unanimous agreement on eight solutions or policies for addressing immigration challenges facing...

Exactly five years ago I emailed the first Speak Up for Good Government newsletter to a small group of recipients. I started with nine basic principles to guide my work. Those principles have since been refined and consolidated to eight "good government" principles . A couple of months later, I created a web page that serves as a repository for my work. It contains Speak Up for Good Government's mission, houses my newsletter and associated publications, and provides links to organizations...

I am convinced that in order for Congress and our Federal government to function effectively, "we the people" need to effectively counterbalance the forces that prevent our elected officials from working in good faith across the aisle to produce legislation that addresses the critical issues that affect our country. The model of "courageous citizenship" being developed by Braver Angels provides a foundation for translating talk into action, leveraging the power of civil discourse to help...