An Alternative to Partisan Politics

Partisanship and gridlock are holding our nation back.

Americans want their leaders to come together around common-sense policies to tackle our hardest problems. The path forward is clear: Increase civic engagement. Improve the quality of political discourse. Support leaders who work together to forge common sense solutions to our hardest problems. If enough Americans come together to reclaim our politics, America will get moving again. Common Ground was written to help us begin.

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Citizenship

A representative democracy cannot sustain itself without active citizenship. Americans are imbued with certain fundamental rights as citizens, and those rights carry responsibilities.

Making Government Work

Our elected representatives owe their loyalty to us, not to their political parties. Our government should work for everyone. It is up to all of us to make that happen.

Health Care

Health is a public good. It is in our national interest to create a health care system that balances quality, access, and cost.

Immigration

Immigration enforcement and counterterrorism are very different functions of government. For either one to be effective, both must be conducted separately.

Education

Access to high quality education is a basic right of every child, regardless of family income. But top-down federal initiatives continue to fail us.

Competitive Markets

Free markets only work when they’re fair. It’s time for government to shift focus from pro-business policies to pro-market policies.

Federal Debt

Uncontrolled growth in federal debt threatens both our economic stability and national security. We need a comprehensive, bipartisan, long-term plan to reduce the debt.

Poverty

Helping people overcome poverty makes our nation stronger. Let’s focus our efforts on public education and on antipoverty initiatives that work.

Foreign Policy

Today’s challenges, from terrorism and nuclear proliferation to cyberattacks and pandemic disease, don’t respect national borders. Resolutions are not possible without some degree of American leadership and international cooperation.

Defense Policy

Open-ended foreign policy commitments and undisciplined spending have overextended the US military. Our military capabilities should reflect our foreign policy initiatives.

Religious Freedom

Gun ownership, religious freedom, reproductive rights, drug policy -- all are complex and deeply personal issues. They shouldn’t drive us apart.

Gun Safety

It is possible to find a balance between the right of individuals to own firearms, and the need for society to know that gun owners are accountable for their use and control.