(Gallup) – Three in
four Americans (75%) last year perceived corruption as widespread in the
country’s government. This figure is up from two in three in 2007 (67%) and
2009 (66%).
While the numbers have
fluctuated slightly since 2007, the trend has been largely stable since 2010.
However, the percentage of U.S. adults who see corruption as pervasive has
never been less than a majority in the past decade, which has had no shortage of
controversies from the U.S. Justice Department’s firings of U.S.
attorneys to the IRS scandal.
These figures are
higher than some might expect, and while the lack of improvement is somewhat
disconcerting, the positive takeaway is that Americans still feel fairly free
to criticize their government. This is not the case in some parts of the
world. Questions about corruption are so sensitive in some countries that even
if Gallup is allowed to ask them, the results may reflect residents’ reluctance
to disparage their government. This is particularly true in countries where
media freedom is restricted.
This is why it is most
appropriate to look at perceptions of corruption through such lenses as the
Freedom House’s Press Freedom rankings. Ratings vary among countries with a
“free press,” including the U.S., and range from a high of 90% in Lithuania to
a low of 14% in Sweden. The U.S. does not make the top 10 list, but notably, it
is not far from it.
http://www.gallup.com/poll/185759/
http://www.teaparty.org/gallup-75-see-widespread-u-s-govt-corruption-120226/
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