Donald Trump’s so-far durable support in the Republican race for the presidential nomination rests largely on widespread dissatisfaction with Washington, and has been bolstered by his vocal criticism of the country’s immigration policies. A new CNN/ORC Poll finds that just 30% of registered voters nationwide say they feel their views […] Read more »
How can democracies make good decisions if citizens are misinformed?
As we all learned in high school, citizens of a good democratic government are well-informed, able to sort through the issues of the day in deciding who to vote for or what is a good policy. … Implicit here is the assumption that while citizens’ preferences may differ, they agree […] Read more »
Majorities Favor Status Quo Over Structural Changes to Medicare and Medicaid
Medicare and Medicaid were signed into law by President Lyndon Johnson on July 30, 1965 in a bipartisan effort to provide health insurance coverage for low-income, disabled, and elderly Americans. In their 50 year history, each of these programs has come to play a key role in providing health coverage […] Read more »
Racism Edges Up Again as Most Important U.S. Problem
The percentage of Americans naming race relations or racism as the most important problem facing the country increased to 9% this month, up from 3% in June. Mentions of race relations as a top problem have risen and fallen multiple times over the past seven months as racially charged events […] Read more »
Government isn’t a business
“Running government like a business” is a mantra for many politicians, particularly Republicans. Two GOP governors who are trying to become president, Ohio’s John Kasich and Wisconsin’s Scott Walker, made that appeal explicit as they transformed their state economic development agencies into “private” entities. The results suggest they know precious […] Read more »
The Long Decline of Trust in Government, and Why That Can Be Patriotic
… It’s easy to look at Washington and conclude that nothing ever gets done. Trust in government has steadily deteriorated over the past several decades and continues to do so. Questioning the aims and efforts of government is a foundation of American citizenship. It’s how the nation was born. The […] Read more »