In our current situation, I tend to favor tipping the United States away from uncontrolled liberties toward greater appreciation for the common good. Those who claim that there are no core values to the American experience, that we share nothing except a thin procedural shell, are missing the substance behind that procedure. Substantive values brought us together, and can keep us together. To point to the importance of core values, however, is not to suggest that these are a given canon, immutably handed down from one generation to another. On the contrary, historical experience shows that the framework must continuously adapt to changing balances within the society and to environmental conditions, while maintaining its own continuity.
Examples come handily from American constitutional history.
Values do not fly on their own wings. Talking about and celebrating values is not enough. They require institutions to nourish them, sustain them, and make them real. First, we value a strong commitment to democracy. This refers to a value, not to a procedure, because without a strong normative commitment to democracy one might be tempted to put love of democracy aside when the results of an election or a vote in the legislature deeply offends one's interests or values.