American Confidence In Government At Its Lowest Point Since The Carter Administration
Winning the future:
(ABC News) – Confidence in the U.S. system of government has dropped to a new low in more than 35 years, with public attitudes burdened by continued economic discontent, soaring gasoline prices, record opposition to the war in Afghanistan — and a letdown in hopes for political progress after a bout of bipartisanship last fall.
Only 26 percent of Americans in a new ABC News/Washington Post poll say they’re optimistic about “our system of government and how well it works,” down 7 points since October to the fewest in surveys dating to 1974. Almost as many, 23 percent, are pessimistic, the closest these measures ever have come. The rest, a record high, are “uncertain” about the system.
The causes are many. Despite a significant advance, more than half still say the economy has not yet begun to recover. And there’s trouble at the pump: Seventy-one percent in this poll, produced for ABC News by Langer Research Associates, report financial hardship as a result of rising gas prices. Forty-four percent call it a “serious” hardship.
Actually, I’m not sure that this necessarily good news for Republicans either. I’ve argued for some time that Americans, through at least the last three national election cycles, have just been voting against incumbents. It hasn’t been about partisanship. I think the best way to describe what’s upsetting Americans is that they’re not happy with the way they’re being governed.
Tags: Barack Obama
