Americans Don't Trust The Government Anymore: New Survey

The Pew Research Center has been conducting surveys on trust in the federal government for decades, and the 2024 update shows that once again, it's near an all-time low.

The latest analysis shows that just 22% of Americans say they believe that the government will do what is right just about always or most of the time. A sizable majority, roughly 59% of respondents, trust the federal government "only some of time." A whopping 17% meanwhile, say they never trust the government.

So 22% believe the government does the right thing always or most of the time, and 17% never have any trust in it. That is not a good ratio. 

As Pew explained, trust in the government has generally been low for the last few decades, with today's results similar to their survey in 2022 and 2021. When they broke the results down into more specific groups, the disparities become even more stark. 

Per their results, 28% of "Democrats and Democratic-leaning independents" say they are "content" with how the federal government operates. That number drops to just 8% among Republicans and those who lean to the right side of the political aisle. 

On the flip side, a whopping 34% of Republicans said they currently feel "anger" toward the federal government. Just 10% of Democrats said they felt the same way. Gee, wonder why?

Former Vice President Joe Biden, Democratic presidential nominee, left, and Senator Kamala Harris, Democratic vice presidential nominee, wear protective masks while holding hands outside the Chase Center during the Democratic National Convention in Wilmington, Delaware, U.S., on Thursday, Aug. 20, 2020.  Photographer: Stefani Reynolds/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Declining Trust In Government Eminently Justifiable

The reasons behind the decline in trust in government are obvious, particularly on the political right. The entire apparatus in Washington is and has been controlled by the left. In D.C., for example, Kamala Harris received 92.5% of the votes in the 2024 presidential election. President-Elect Donald Trump got just 6.6% of votes. Broken down numerically, it was 294,185 for Harris to 21,076 for Trump. D.C. is literally the furthest left place in America, even worse than San Francisco, where the margin was 80-15 for Harris/Trump.

And when and where the political left has power, they weaponize it. Politically-motivated persecution has become a predictable part of life when Democrats have control of the federal government. It's hard to have trust or faith in Washington to do the right thing when right-leaning Americans see federal authority turned against them by vindictive progressives, instead of focusing on competent governance.

There isn't a single federal agency that hasn't been overwhelmed by Democrats, who then strictly enforce conformity. Then get away with whatever disastrous, or even criminal, actions that they may have engaged in. The Hunter Biden pardon being the latest example, and rumored efforts by Joe Biden to protect Anthony Fauci. 

If you want people to trust you, stop giving them reasons not to.