Thus increased attention has been given lately to the question of why Americans have declining confidence in the federal government. The reasons for the decline are several. Trust in all institutions took a big hit from Vietnam and Watergate, and the sharpest drops in public confidence in government occurred during that time. People feel high anxiety and a loss of control over their own lives. To them government seems less relevant and not particularly helpful with their difficult work transitions and their burdensome education, health care, and retirement costs.
People are concerned about corruption and low ethical standards among government officials.
They believe that many are dishonest and controlled by special interests. People will often say it takes new Members of Congress only a few months to become corrupted by the system. Americans think that one of the best ways to improve public confidence in government is to find more responsive political leaders. By a sizeable margin people feel that politics prevents government from serving the people well. Studies have shown that public confidence in legislatures generally goes down after the proceedings are opened up through television and other means, even for legislatures that had greatly improved their operations and performance compared to when they operated behind closed doors.