Americans Name Government as No. 1 U.S. Problem

Americans continue to name the government (18%) as the most important U.S. problem, a distinction it has had for the past four months. Americans’ mentions of the economy as the top problem (11%) dropped this month, leaving it tied with jobs (10%) for second place. CONT. Justin McCarthy, Gallup Read more »

More proof that Republicans are from Mars and Democrats are from Venus

… The repeated pattern of threatened shutdowns is hardly accidental. Republican officeholders’ proclivity for confrontation reflects the distinct preferences of Republicans in the public. As the graph below illustrates, a consistent majority of Republicans in the mass electorate admire politicians “who stick to their principles” more than those “who make […] Read more »

Americans Give Up On Washington

Michael Hansen, age 45, is not alone in thinking that national politics has become “almost like a slow motion car wreck.” … “After 10 years of paying attention to politics, I just prefer state and local government,” says Hansen, an independent voter who works in food sales and lives in […] Read more »

The Clinton emails: politics, governance, and the limits of transparency

In the days that have passed since the revelation that Hillary Clinton never used her official State Department email address, instead using a private address (hosted on a private server), two lines of inquiry have emerged. The first regards Clinton’s choice as a matter of governance. These pieces have focused […] Read more »

Most Say Government Policies Since Recession Have Done Little to Help Middle Class, Poor

The public makes sharp distinctions about which groups have benefited – and which have not – from the economic policies the government has put in place since the start of the recession. Majorities say that large banks, large corporations and the wealthy have been helped a great deal or a […] Read more »