Excerpt: In today’s political climate—dominated by division, privatization of public goods, and deepening distrust—what alternatives do we Americans have? An enduring answer lies in our own civic history: commonwealth politics—a tradition rooted in the idea that citizens are central in caring for the public good, also known as “the commons.” Defending the Commons: A Republican Stands Up for Public Lands: Ryan Zinke, Republican representative from Montana and former Secretary of the Interior, stripped an amendment from the budget bill that Republican Mark Amodei had advanced putting 500,000 acres of public lands up for sale. Zinke didn’t act out of ideological fealty to either markets or big government. He was rather motivated by his love of the commons.