The trip was predicated on the optimistic notion that if Americans would only listen to each other, they would find more that united than divided them. [...] A farmer in the group told Third Way’s eager listeners he knew exactly what was wrong with America: his fellow Americans.

“You’ve got all these parasites making a living off the bureaucracy," the farmer declared, “like leeches pulling you down, bleeding you dry." We had been in the state for just a few hours, and already the researchers’ quest for mutual understanding seemed to be hitting a snag.