Critical Analysis

1. What portion of Americans currently say they trust the federal government to do what is right just about always/most of the time?

2. What is the big story the graph tells?

3. What are the three main causes of this story?

4. What is one political consequence of this story?

5. Do you trust the federal government to do what is right just about always/most of the time?

6. How different would the answer to the question be if we asked Americans about their trust in state and local government?

7. In 2001, Americans’ trust in government hit a recent high. How do you explain this increase in trust?

8. When the pandemic first hit the U.S., I (wrongly) predicted that this challenge would bring American’s together. Why do you think Americans’ trust in government has not increased in this calamitous time?

9. How do you think the lack of trust in the federal government will impact voting and the 2022 election?

10. Imagine you shared this data with an Anti-Federalist like Patrick Henry or Robert Brutus 1 Yates. What argument would they make about the Constitution and the power of the federal government?

Learning Extension

Read this poppin’ Pew Research Center report on public trust.

Action Extension

Register to Vote

Visual Extension