In the moment

The advocates of Big Government have pushed things too far, and it's started to scare people, which is what gave rise to the Tea Party movement. Those folks have managed to do in a year what my friends in the Libertarian Party haven't been able to do in two decades, which is to get the attention of those in power by changing the nature of the conversation. And that has brought us to this moment of clarity, when we can all see what the stakes are and choose sides for the battle.

Here is the Mount Vernon Statement, a call to "Constitutional Conservatism" endorsed by just about every conservative organization in the country:

We recommit ourselves to the ideas of the American Founding.  Through the Constitution, the Founders created an enduring framework of limited government based on the rule of law. They sought to secure national independence, provide for economic opportunity, establish true religious liberty and maintain a flourishing society of republican self-government.

[. . .]

The conservatism of the Constitution limits government's powers but ensures that government performs its proper job effectively. It refines popular will through the filter of representation. It provides checks and balances through the several branches of government and a federal republic.

A Constitutional conservatism unites all conservatives through the natural fusion provided by American principles. It reminds economic conservatives that morality is essential to limited government, social conservatives that unlimited government is a threat to moral self-government, and national security conservatives that energetic but responsible government is the key to America's safety and leadership role in the world.