Last month the Pew Research Center released a poll showing that Americans are losing faith in their system of government. Only one-fifth of adults surveyed believe democracy is working “very well” in the United States, while two-thirds say “significant changes” are needed to governmental “design and structure.”
The 2016 election is one explanation for these findings. Something is not right in a country where Donald Trump is able to win the presidency.
But here’s another possibility: What if trust in American democracy is eroding because the nation has become too big to be effectively governed through traditional means? CONT.
Neil Gross (Colby College), New York Times