This chapter explores the notion of rhetorical citizenship and suggests its relevance to studies of rhetoric in society. My analysis suggests that an underdeveloped appreciation of rhetoric's role in public deliberation can be witnessed in a case study where responses to two public statements work to exclude particular points of view and to defer discussion and thus reflect a less than tolerant debate culture. The overall trajectory of my argument is that in this and similar settings, public political debate would benefit from increased attention to various manifestations of rhetorical practice, and that the concept of rhetorical citizenship may be one avenue for cultivating such a development, particularly as a frame for explicating and negotiating the communicative norms for public deliberation.