New Zogby Data Demonstrates Hostility Towards Congress, Public Institutions

As incumbent members of Congress gaze forebodingly across the electoral landscape towards November, a new Zogby interactive poll shows some astoundingly poor results in regard to how trustworthy Americans find Congress, the Courts, the Media and other public institutions:

Overall, just 3% said they think Congress in general is trustworthy, compared to 24% who said President Bush is trustworthy and 29% who said they can put their faith in the national court system, the survey shows. Corporate leaders in America are nearly as widely distrusted as Congress – just 7% said they are trustworthy.

However, Americans do feel they can bank on the actions and words of their friends and co-workers – 75% said the people they work with and live near are trustworthy.

How Americans rate the trustworthiness of select groups, with 5 being most trustworthy and 1 being not at all trustworthy.

High (4+5)
Medium (3)
Low (1+2)
Not Sure

Congress
3%
20%
76%

Corporate Leaders
7%
23%
69%
1%

The Media
11%
31%
58%

The President
24%
7%
69%

The Courts
29%
38%
33%
1%

Friends and Co-Workers
75%
21%
4%
1%

Despite the ongoing debate regarding the statistical veracity of online surveys, which is valid, the size of the sample conducted 4/18-24 was 8,175 adults with an error margin estimated to be 1.1%, thus making the results worth considering.

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