Bush Institute: Practice Pluralism to Make America Great Again

Are you a Republican addicted to Trump? Would you like to escape the Trump cult and get back to being a productive, respected, real Republican?

Try weaning yourself off the toxicity of Trumpism by following the George W. Bush Presidential Center, whose scholars do a reasonably smart and honest job of talking about values Republicans used to espouse, like American pluralism. Consider this argument that making America greater depends on mutual respect rather than contempt:

The connections between loving others, resisting contempt, and maintaining our democratic republic were inspirations for writing, We the People: Pluralism in Real Life, a new George W. Bush Institute toolkit for working across differences.

…The first habit we share in our pluralism toolkit explains that one must build a foundation for respectful engagement with others. The concrete of that foundation is recognizing every person’s innate human dignity. This is how we start loving fellow citizens – enemies too – and strengthen America’s national cohesion.

That’s because pluralism works best when people have a shared mission, challenge, or cause that diverse and competing groups can rally around. That “thing” becomes pluralism’s animating North Star; it answers “why” we do something together.

These north stars can be just about anything and might shift frequently depending upon the situation, issue, or actors involved. A notable exception to that fluidity, however, is the recognition of human dignity in others. That’s fixed because it applies to all people at all times. At the most basic level, it explains why we share the same house that President Lincoln described as being unable to stand if divided.

No matter what seemingly irreconcilable differences Americans have, they should be bound by the shared belief that every person has value because of their innate dignity – including enemies. That makes them worthy of basic levels of respect, as well as the extension of rights and liberties.

But doing so isn’t always warm and fuzzy. The path of love shouldn’t be reduced to merely treating others with kindness or providing affirmation. Sometimes, it leads to intense disagreements and arguments. Nor should loving others exclude the pursuit of justice and consequences. But it always leaves the door open to grace and redemption.

Alternatively, when engagement is based on contempt, it creates excuses to view others as less than human. It’s then easier to label them as “evil” because of their beliefs or associations. Once that happens, any engagement on any issue becomes a compromise with evil – which makes working or living together nearly impossible.

That’s why loving enemies is the hard, but necessary work of patriots who love their country [Chris Walsh, “Loving Your Enemies Is the Ultimate North Star,” George W. Bush Presidential Institute, 2026.04.02].

As Walsh says, pluralism isn’t just a warm fuzzy ideal. It’s at the core of practical actions that drive effective civic leadership:

Create better dialogue through better disagreement. Democracy is all about disagreement. Embrace it and lead with curiosity. Set ground rules to encourage civil conversation. Listen to genuinely understand your opponent’s positions. Define your terms. Seek clarity and don’t assume or stereotype. Criticize ideas, not people.

…Model pluralism as a leader. An effective leader is one who can champion pluralism by demonstrating civility, seeking to understand different sides of an issue, rejecting oversimplification of nuanced perspectives, and inspiring trust across diverse constituencies through service.

Incorporate pluralism into decision-making. Decision-making processes that allow for competing voices and perspectives to be shared, debated and respected help build an acceptable consensus.

Make pluralism a duty of citizenship. An active, engaged citizenry is core to democracy. It’s necessary to recognize that whether we agree or disagree, we do so in the capacity of citizens who have equal rights. While we don’t think alike, we act together — that includes shared projects and contentious processes such as elections or policy debates.

Question your assumptions. Pluralism isn’t just practiced between opposing groups. Encourage disagreement within your team. Build a culture in which people feel comfortable challenging the group without feeling like an outcast. We can develop better solutions and arguments for our positions when people are free to challenge the team’s conventional wisdom [William McKenzie and Christopher Walsh, “As America Celebrates Its 205th Birthday, Pluralism Remains a Big Deal,” DC Journal, 2026.03.26].

See, Republicans? You don’t have to keep groveling before a golden idol. You can reclaim your souls, be good Republicans, and advocate for real American values. You might have to vote for a few Democrats while you wait for the other members of your party to recover, but hey, that’s pluralism at work.