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Americans are struggling. Many no longer have confidence in the nation’s future. They doubt the goodwill and intentions of the half of the country that doesn’t share their political beliefs. They don’t believe the news, they don’t trust the electoral system, they don’t know whether their children will live better lives. Some are even questioning whether the United States remains a full democracy, watching with trepidation as autocratic governments have taken hold elsewhere.

President Donald Trump has tapped into this public sentiment from the beginning of his time in office. Rather than working to ease the culture of deep distrust, he has harnessed the widespread unhappiness to galvanize political support and to weaken the standing of anyone or any institution that stands in his way. The resulting culture of division, distrust, and disillusionment has created a volatile environment in which demagogic forces can step in and fuel an increasingly toxic political atmosphere.

Americans are struggling. Many no longer have confidence in the nation’s future. They doubt the goodwill and intentions of the half of the country that doesn’t share their political beliefs. They don’t believe the news, they don’t trust the electoral system, they don’t know whether their children will live better lives. Some are even questioning whether the United States remains a full democracy, watching with trepidation as autocratic governments have taken hold elsewhere.

President Donald Trump has tapped into this public sentiment from the beginning of his time in office. Rather than working to ease the culture of deep distrust, he has harnessed the widespread unhappiness to galvanize political support and to weaken the standing of anyone or any institution that stands in his way. The resulting culture of division, distrust, and disillusionment has created a volatile environment in which demagogic forces can step in and fuel an increasingly toxic political atmosphere.

Ultimately, beyond the partisan battles that will shape the nation’s direction, Americans need a deeper conversation at home—one that grapples seriously with the civic changes required to move the country forward. These changes extend beyond policy debates and structural reformers; they involve rethinking the habits, expectations, and responsibilities that sustain a healthy democratic culture. In the summer of 1979, President Jimmy Carter was willing to have this conversation.

Carter, the former Georgia governor and peanut farmer who had defeated President Gerald Ford three years earlier, served in the White House during an extraordinarily turbulent era. The 1960s had left Americans bitterly divided over race relations, cultural values, and the war in Vietnam. The nation had watched as some of its most compelling political figures were assassinated. Then came President Richard Nixon, whose........

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