Eighteen leaders representing the three major branches of Washington conservative political and public policy activism met earlier today near Mount Vernon to sign and issue a new statement of common principles intended to provide a rallying point for the wider movement, much as did the Sharon Statement of 1960 and National Review founder William F. Buckley, Jr.’s Credenda of 1955.

The statement was unveiled before a large crowd of the signers’ colleagues and co-conspirators, and attracted more than 6,000 additional signers within a few hours of being posted on the Internet. The event was also covered by Fox News and a sizeable number of mainstream media organizations.