The Progressive Steamroller through American Institutions is Destroying Trust

The 2023 Gallup Poll of trust in American institutions has been generally ignored by mainstream media, yet its findings are the most important story of the time. In illuminating the historically low trust in American institutions, Gallup showed the enormity of the trend over the past few decades.

If this trend continues, Americans will have absolutely no trust left

The key takeaway is that American trust in critical national institutions is only about half of what it was around four decades ago, and falling fast. From the report entitled Historically Low Faith in US Institutions Continues: “The historically depressed nature of today’s ratings is evident….. That average fell to a new low of 26% this hear….. it is 10 points lower than in 2020. Confidence has generally trended downward since registering 48% in 1979 and holding near 45% in the 1980s. It averaged closer to 40% in the 1990s and early 2000 before dropping to the low 30% range in the 2010s.”

If this trend continues, Americans will have absolutely no trust left. Alongside this trend of lost trust is the corresponding trend of the progressive takeover of those institutions. The primary way to reestablish trust is to roll back progressive dominance and return to common sense.

First, the progressive takeover of key American institutions corresponds directly with the loss of trust in those institutions.

Starting with the media, a 2022 study done by the Syracuse University Newhouse School of Public Communications found: In a poll of 1,600 journalists, only 3.4 percent identified as Republican while more than ten times that percent identified as Democrat. In contrast, in the 1970s over 25 percent identified as Republican, while 35 percent identified as Democrat. 

The progressive onslaught trend within academia is even worse

The progressive onslaught trend within academia is even worse. The Higher Education Research Institute (HERI) began surveys of ideological leanings of university faculty in 1989 and the findings have been eye-raising. In 1989-90, 42 percent of faculty identified as left-leaning, 40 percent moderate, and 18 percent politically conservative. Fast forward to 2016, and 60 percent of faculty were on the political left and only 12 percent were on the right. A more recent Harvard Crimson study found that a whopping 80 percent of Harvard faculty identified as liberal or very liberal, while only one percent were conservative. A 2021 survey of students found that around 80 percent self-censor, primarily due to the stifling dominance of progressive ideology among faculty and students.

Unfortunately, even institutions Americans have traditionally held as apolitical, like medicine and science, have shown similar trends of progressive takeover and subsequent loss of trust. This exploded during the COVID crisis and George Floyd protests/riots, involving demands for even “scientific” institutions to bow to progressive Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) and Critical Race Theory (CRT) imperatives. Americans have watched as corporations have moved from primarily conservative leadership in the 1970s to an overwhelmingly progressive leadership by the 2020s. Corporate leaders have bowed to and furthered Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) demands, which push progressive ideology over even shareholder profit or the values of the customer base of the American people. They have pushed LGBTQ+ ideology well beyond the center of American opinion. Bud Light’s ad campaign which destroyed the brand is a stark example.

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It’s important to note the silver lining of trust in the Gallup poll, along with an important comparison. Small business was way out front of all other institutions in the trust of the American people (64 percent). This is in comparison with “big business”, which was near the bottom at only 14 percent. Considering the similar nature of these two entities (business), the vast divide tells us a great deal. Unlike big business, small businesses are closest to the American people and generally in the center-right values of the American people. Small businesses include tens of thousands of entities of which progressive ideology cannot gain the same kind of foothold compared to large entities. Small business owners cannot be “cancelled” the way employees and management of big business can. Service to clients is the sole criteria for success, and so small business must focus on merit first and not ideology.

American society will not survive if our key institutions continue to sink in the mire of totalitarian progressive ideology destroying the trust of the American people. The solution to this is two-fold. 

We need to demand balance in places like universities and media 

We need to demand balance in places like universities and media. Progressive rhetoric demands the importance of diversity, and yet key institutions have the least ideological or political diversity ever. Those inside institutions will not make the change, so it will require the American people getting more involved in demanding change. We should also push reduce the size and power of institutions to reasonable level.

Government is one entity most Americans agree needs to be significantly reduced. Anti-trust laws can be used on big tech and corporation collusion efforts. Universities should be starved of excess money to reduce bureaucracy like the massive DEI apparatus.

“In God We Trust” should remain our ultimate place of our faith. We must also regain trust in our institutions, and that will only happen with God’s blessings.

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