The first anniversary of the January 6 mob at the Capitol has prompted lots of commentary about how polarized America is. But why is America polarized? The frustration and anger that drives people to extremes isn't made up.

America needs a new public narrative, with new leaders. The key, we think, is to replace red tape with human responsibility. Nothing will get fixed until we re-empower Americans to roll up their sleeves and make things work again.

The $1.2 trillion package is about $10,000 for every American household. Without implementation oversight, the money will gush out of Washington without any discipline over, for example, New York work rules that can make infrastructure projects five times as expensive as in other developed countries.

Politics today seems dominated by loonies and fanatics: On the right, "Stop the steal" and anti-vaxxers; on the left, "woke" thought-police and spendthrift policies with no implementation plan. Extremists succeed mainly in driving us apart, not (so far) changing government. But do the leaders of either party offer a coherent governing vision?

There are about 5 trillion reasons to worry about the massive Biden spending proposal, but at least $1 trillion of it is aimed at overdue infrastructure needs — roads, transmission lines, broadband, water, and other "hard" infrastructure that will improve America's competitiveness and environmental sustainability.

Do you feel buffeted by crazy viewpoints on both sides? Stop the Steal. Anti-vaxxers. Cancel King Lear. America is evil. Mass idiocies are amplified by social media, but all this nonsense is enabled by something else: the progressive disempowerment, since the 1960s, of people in positions of responsibility.

Overhauling government is needed to achieve public and private goals, most Americans agree. But overhaul is impossible without a new political movement. A “first mover” problem prevents any political leader from getting in the crosshairs of the powerful interest groups that defend the status quo.

How does change happen in Washington? The list of needed changes is long — to address climate change, unmanageable schools, runaway healthcare costs, unaccountable police, obsolete laws, and more. Decades go by, and none of these problems get fixed. Even President Biden's ambitious infrastructure proposal (which incorporates Common Good's proposals for permitting reform) doesn't take on the core changes needed to address climate change.

Extremism is rattling the foundations of American society. Factual truth is under attack from the right. Core liberal values of free speech and tolerance are under attack from the left. Each side points to the other's extremism as justification for its own. Resolving these escalating culture wars is impossible as long as the battle is waged over abstractions such as reinterpreting history.

Americans are increasingly disaffected with Washington. Nor does either party enjoy the support of a plurality of voters. There are more independents than Democrats or Republicans. What do Americans want? For starters, they want things to work. Practical solutions to running schools, delivering healthcare, cleaning up the environment, and modernizing infrastructure shouldn't be that hard.

There’s a gaping hole in the pending infrastructure negotiations: How to build infrastructure without years of delay and ridiculous waste.

The defiance by Congresswoman Liz Cheney to Donald Trump and his “stolen election” narrative has now cost her a leadership position, and may prompt a schism within the Republican Party. This revolt could be good not only for principled conservatives, but for all Americans.

President Biden's speech to the nation presented a bold agenda – to rebuild infrastructure, expand education and healthcare, tackle climate change, provide jobs and childcare, and even "end cancer as we know it." President Biden called upon government "to prove democracy still works."

Being a cop is hard, and even harder when all police are tarred with the brush of isolated cops who abuse public trust. But it’s hard to fix this problem when police chiefs lack the authority to hold bad cops accountable.

Public unions have erected an impenetrable barrier to good government. Collective bargaining agreements have destroyed accountability and bar common sense in running government. But what can we do about it? Union political power and long-term contracts prevent democratically-elected officials from making government work.

President Biden's theme of unity is hopeful and necessary. Most Americans are exhausted by identity politics and polarization. But what change is needed to bring Americans together again, and to reclaim shared values of individual and community responsibility?