Distrust in America
Recently, a DHS whistleblower has come forward with information regarding the agency’s politicization and impending intelligence reporting on Russian election interference. This is just the most recent of many reports of intelligence suppression and executive interference in the intelligence community and other agencies. This week, the DOJ has opted to step in to represent Trump in a state-level court case for an alleged rape that occurred in the 90s against journalist E. Jean Carroll. Reports abound allege surveillance of journalists and activists. Armed, unmarked federal law enforcement agents have appeared at numerous BLM protests with significant pushback from local lawmakers. Multiple sources reported the Trump administration pressured the CDC to cease COVID testing on exposed individuals that had not shown symptoms. The FBI has been repeatedly scrutinized for investigations regarding the President and his staff, frequently called out by Conservatives as a nigh traitorous agency intent on destroying the presidency.
This slash-and-burn outrage pattern by both political camps contributes to an ever-increasing problem: the degradation of public trust in our federal institutions. The American public trust in government has reached a near-historic low with a 17% trust rating, the lowest since 2011. Before this, the Obama administration faced the lowest trust rating at 15% in October 2011 at the height of the Occupy movement and debt-ceiling crisis. This steady decline in public trust has been prevalent since 2001 when Bush’s administration held a 54% rating in the aftermath of 9/11.
The concept of measuring public trust in institutions is nothing new. Van De Walle and Bouckaert’s 2003 study on public service performance and public perception showed how no matter the institution’s actual performance, perception is everything. There will be a constant reflection of administration performance and institutional performance that ultimately determine trust levels. Webb similarly found in 1996 that an agency or institution’s predictable behaviors will rarely cause any changes in trust. Institutional deviancy will cause an intense reaction by the general public and ultimately determine whether there will be a loss or gain in trust levels. The consistently “deviant” behavior of the DHS, DOJ, and CDC acting less as the apolitical institutions they were designed to be has caused significant backlash from Liberal and Moderate camps looking to maintain some level of stability within the administration.
The most surprising change has been Conservative trust levels in what has historically been the American beacon of law and order: the FBI. Generally speaking, the FBI has consistently performed in the same manner they always have. Suddenly, this is a problem. Washington needs to take some time to deeply consider why this is and whether this newfound scrutiny is helping or hurting.
Regardless of where you stand, it should be clear that American trust in our institutions is severely broken. This damage will take years of effort by Washington to repair. It is at this time we must ask ourselves, how can we ensure this gets fixed? The current status quo is not working, nor have past efforts. Our duty as an electorate is to place people into power that will act on our best interests. Perhaps it is time we start fulfilling that duty.
