The ALLIES Within

Bright America's latest gathering in Virginia inspires local civic, business, and faith leaders - from both the right and left - to take action to defend America's constitution

Beyond capacity crowd at Bright America’s latest “Community for the Constitution” event in Virginia.

On a crisp November morning in Virginia, outside Washington, DC, 130 Americans gathered to do something that feels increasingly rare: come together across ideological lines to defend the Constitution.

Every seat was filled — in fact, we had people squeezed in like sardines because the demand for the event outstripped our greatest expectations. Among those assembled were longtime Republicans and Independents, including several who had vocally supported the current president in recent years but now find themselves alarmed. Our guests were united by a shared concern that transcends party: the erosion of constitutional norms, the rule of law, and the institutions that safeguard American democracy.

This is what Communities for the Constitution looks like — and it’s what gives me hope.

Honoring a Legacy of Integrity

One of the more poignant and inspiring parts of the program is when we honored Judge William Webster, who passed away this summer at 101. Judge Webster’s life exemplified nonpartisan public service at its finest. As Judge David Tatel eloquently reminded us, Webster was appointed by four presidents — three Republicans and one Democrat — to serve as U.S. Attorney, federal appellate judge, FBI Director, and CIA Director.

What made Webster extraordinary wasn’t just his résumé. It was his approach to justice. In a 1970s case involving gay student organizations, Judge Webster — a Nixon appointee — ruled that universities couldn’t suppress ideas they found objectionable. “Solutions to tough problems are not found in the repression of ideas,” he wrote.

When the Reagan Justice Department reviewed Webster for a potential Supreme Court nomination, they praised his qualifications but noted he didn’t “consistently” align with their preferred judicial philosophy. He decided cases based on precedent and facts, not ideology. Imagine that.

As Judge Tatel said in closing: “In these troubling times, we need judges like Bill Webster more than ever.”

The Darkness and the Light

Veteran journalist John Harwood moderated a sobering but essential conversation with Trevor Potter, founder and president of our strategic partner Campaign Legal Center. Potter didn’t sugarcoat the threats we face.

“This is an administration that refers to its political opponents as enemies, not just enemies of the president, but enemies of the country.”

He described a national security order targeting Americans for “views that are un-American” or that contradict “traditional ideas of morality and family life.”

But Potter also offered light. CLC and our broader movement have already won significant victories, including permanent injunctions against unlawful portions of the election executive order. District courts across the country have consistently pushed back against administration overreach. California voters overwhelmingly passed Proposition 50, authorizing their own defensive-gerrymandering. Virginia may follow suit.

Most importantly, Potter emphasized that legal victories alone aren’t enough:

“It needs civil society. It needs groups like this. It needs people in this room to stand up as well.”

Why This Matters Beyond Virginia

This event is one of many we’re organizing across the country. We’ve held similar gatherings earlier this year and there will be many more throughout 2026 — because this isn’t about one state or one region. This is about building a nationwide network of Americans who understand what’s at stake and are willing to act.

What made this gathering particularly meaningful was its genuine ideological diversity. When people who disagreed vehemently about the 2016, 2020, and/or 2024 elections sit together to defend constitutional principles in 2025, that’s a signal. When former Trump supporters acknowledge that something has gone profoundly wrong, that matters.

One of our event chairs, put it perfectly:

“As we watch leaders of institutions, titans of industry, and elected representatives shrink in the face of these challenges, keep their mouths shut, or just plan to ride it out, it’s so much easier to see who the true heroes are.”

The true heroes are organizations like Campaign Legal Center, which is fighting dozens of cases in state and federal courts to protect voting rights, fair maps, and constitutional limits on executive power. CLC is actively litigating or participating in more than 48 cases across 22 states, leveraging decades of nonpartisan expertise and proven track records in courts and legislatures.

And the true heroes are also the citizens who show up — who fill events beyond capacity, who vote in special elections, who invest in this work, who refuse to accept that what we’re witnessing in this country is neither normal nor inevitable.

A Community, Not Just an Event

What happened in Virginia was a reminder that Americans of goodwill still vastly outnumber those who would tear down our constitutional system. It was proof that concern for the rule of law isn’t partisan — it’s patriotic.

Judge Webster spent his life in service to institutions bigger than himself. He was respected by conservatives and liberals alike because he understood that the Constitution doesn’t belong to any party or ideology. It belongs to all of us, and it’s our responsibility to defend it.

As we face threats to democratic norms unprecedented in living memory, we need more than litigation — though we desperately need that too. We need communities. We need Americans who remember that our differences are small compared to what we share.

We’re building these communities across the country. Join us.