The Great American Rewrite

Time to Hit Refresh on the U.S. Constitution

"We don't need to tear down the Constitution. We need to breathe new life into it, reclaiming it as a living promise rather than allowing it to become a weapon in partisan warfare," writes Dr. Paul Zeitz. @alancrosthwaite/iStock/GettyImages

First published in The Fulcrum, June 17, 2025

We are standing at the edge of a precipice—and the Constitution, once a beacon of hope, is being hijacked as a prop in an anti-constitutional power grab.

On June 14, 2025, I watched with a grief-stricken heart as tanks rolled down Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C. It was billed as a patriotic military parade. But behind the red, white, and blue spectacle lies a dark agenda: a coordinated effort to dismantle our democracy from within. At the heart of this effort is the Project 2025 movement—a sweeping agenda to concentrate power in the executive branch, erode the rule of law, curtail civil liberties, and roll back hard-fought rights. Now, there is growing momentum for a dark money-controlled Article V Constitutional Convention that could place our founding document into the hands of these partisan extremists and anti-democratic dark money interests.

We saw the signs. We've read the playbook. And we say: “Not on our watch.”

#unifyUSA is a rising inter-partisan citizens’ movement committed to a different path. We're not here to defend a broken system. We're here to reimagine it. That's why we've launched The Great American Rewrite—a nationwide effort to hit refresh on the U.S. Constitution through a democratic process rooted in the voice and will of the people.

The foundation of this effort is the creation of State Citizens' Assemblies—deliberative bodies of everyday Americans who reflect the full diversity of each state. Unlike the potential Article V convention driven by political elites, these assemblies aren't run by politicians or pundits. They are guided by the principles of fairness, inclusion, and public trust. While partisan forces seek to capture constitutional change through traditional political channels, the proposed State Citizens’ Assemblies create an alternative pathway where citizens engage in deep listening, honest dialogue, and collaborative problem-solving about fundamental democratic reforms.

Consider how a Citizens' Assembly might tackle campaign finance reform—an issue that unites Americans across party lines who are frustrated by corporate influence in politics. Rather than leaving this to politicians with conflicts of interest, ordinary citizens could deliberatively examine various approaches, from public financing to transparency requirements, and craft solutions that serve the public rather than special interests.

From Colorado to South Carolina, Maryland to Nevada, citizens are coming together across lines of party, race, generation, and geography to accelerate this work of democratic renewal. We are not alone in this vision. The Grand Bargain Project represents a cross-ideological effort to create consensus on shared constitutional principles, including equal representation, checks and balances, individual liberty, the rule of law, ethical governance, and a commitment to the common good. These frameworks demonstrate that Americans of different political perspectives can find substantial agreement on democratic fundamentals when they engage in good-faith dialogue rather than partisan combat.

That's why we are calling on every state in the nation to establish and convene a States Citizens' Assembly by April 2026. These assemblies will lay the groundwork for a National Citizens' Assembly and a public vote on a refreshed Constitution by July 4, 2026—our nation's 250th birthday. While this timeline is ambitious, the urgency of our democratic crisis demands we begin this vital work immediately, building momentum state by state until we reach critical mass for national transformation. If we let an authoritarian regime take hold, it could entrench its power for tragic decades ahead.

This movement explicitly welcomes skeptics and conservatives who worry about constitutional changes. We share concerns about preserving what works in our system while addressing what clearly doesn't. The Citizens' Assembly process itself provides safeguards through its emphasis on deliberation, diverse representation, and transparency that traditional political processes lack.

We don't need to tear down the Constitution. We need to breathe new life into it, reclaiming it as a living promise rather than allowing it to become a weapon in partisan warfare. That promise must be forged in public, by citizens—not captured in private by dark money, elites, or extremists.

The Great American Rewrite is not about left versus right. It's about bottom-up versus top-down. It's about ordinary Americans taking back the authorship of our democracy.

Here's how you can join us: Call on your Governor and State Legislators to launch a Citizens’ Assembly in your state. After signing, you'll be part of a movement that will drive the transformation from a dark-money-driven democracy to a participatory-citizen-driven democracy. This is how we build the infrastructure for genuine democratic renewal—one citizen, one community, one state at a time.

The future is calling. We can be the answer. This is our moment to choose authorship over apathy.

America. Under New Management. Ours.

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Dr. Paul Zeitz is the Co-Founder of #unifyUSA, an inter-partisan citizens' movement dedicated to using Citizens’ Assemblies to Hit Refresh on the U.S. Constitution: A Revolutionary Roadmap for Fulfilling on the Promise of Democracy and Revolutionary Optimism: 7 Steps for Living as a Love-Centered Activist.