Over recent decades, only three institutions – the military, small business and police – have consistently maintained “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of public confidence in levels exceeding 50%, according to annual surveys.
Conspicuously, each of those three institutions is traditionally associated more closely with conservative principles.
Naturally, the political left found that intolerable and set about working to cut them down to size.
Years of demonizing our nation’s police forces have brought record spikes in violent crime, as well as perilous recruitment and retention crises.
And now, it appears that the left has found success in undermining the military as well.
In the span of just five years, according to a new Ronald Reagan Institute annual National Defense Survey, the percentage of Americans expressing “a great deal of confidence” in the U.S. military has plummeted from 70% to just 48%:
Every year, the Reagan Institute asks about Americans’ level of trust and confidence in a variety of public institutions. Just five years ago, 70% said they had a great deal of trust and confidence in the military. However, that percentage steadily declined, and last year, for the first time, a minority of Americans had the highest level of confidence in the military, only 45%…Now 48% say they have a great deal of trust and confidence in the military. Notably, this is still down 22 points from merely a few years ago.
Unfortunately, that Reagan Institute poll doesn’t stand in isolation, as other survey groups show the same recent decline. According to the Pew Research Center’s annual survey, the number of Americans expressing “a great deal” of confidence in the military has fallen to an unprecedented low of just 25%. Alarmingly, 25% of respondents also reported “not too much/no confidence at all” in the military in that Pew poll.
Although public trust has declined across multiple institutions in recent years, none of their declines match the decline of trust in the military, which has been especially pronounced. “No other public institution asked about,” the Reagan Institute emphasizes, “including the Supreme Court, Congress, the Presidency, the news media, or law enforcement, has seen as sharp a decline in public trust over this time.”
Just as notably, the reason for the decline in public confidence won’t surprise conservatives. Woke politicization stands above all other causes offered by respondents, with a surprising degree of cross-partisan agreement:
To better understand this trend, the Reagan Institute added a new series of questions about the extent to which a variety of factors have decreased public confidence in the military. The top response is military leadership becoming overly politicized, with 62% overall saying that has decreased their confidence. This includes 60% of Democrats, 60% of Independents, and 65% of Republicans.
Moreover, the president receives particular blame from respondents, versus rank-and-file military leaders or personnel:
While they see civilian DOD leaders and uniformed military leaders as contributing to this issue, they are more likely to blame presidents as Commanders-in-Chief. Nearly 60% of respondents say that performance and competence of presidents has decreased their confidence in the military.
Afghanistan withdrawal, anyone?
That is not to say that military leadership is without considerable responsibility. Take General Mark Milley, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who in his prototypical bellicosity defended the teaching of critical race theory at the U.S. Military Academy. “On the issue of critical race theory,” Milley said, “a lot of us have to get much smarter on whatever the theory is.”
This helps explain why every branch of the U.S. military has struggled to meet its 2022 recruiting goals. The U.S. Army faced a 40% shortfall earlier this year, with the Navy announcing that it was 1,473 sailors short of its own goal. Retired Lieutenant General and Heritage Foundation scholar Thomas Spoehr went so far as to note that, “2022 is the year we question the sustainability of an all-volunteer force.”
In an increasingly unstable world, with major powers China and Russia increasing levels of threat, that is something that we simply cannot tolerate.
With some urgency, Congress can play a role, and this week Congress forced the Biden Administration to abandon its politicized COVID vaccine mandate as part of the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA). The NDAA now reads, “Not later than 30 days after the day of the enactment of this Act, the Secretary of Defense shall rescind the mandate that members of the Armed Forces be vaccinated against COVID-19 pursuant to the memorandum dated August 24, 2021, regarding ‘Mandatory Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination of Department of Defense Service Members.”
Whatever one’s view of vaccines or vaccine mandates, forcible discharges illustrated the very type of increased politicization at the center of the public’s declining trust.
The new Republican House majority must press even further and reverse the politicization of the U.S. military, before the rot deepens and public trust evaporates to even more dangerous lows.
Well as the political Generals and Admirals on the Joint Chiefs continue to implement more and more of the destructive woke agenda within our military, I would expect that confidence number to continue to decline as time goes by. Military effectiveness has been replaced by political correctness and “How woke can you go?”. Neither of which matters one bit on the battle field against a committed and capable foe whose only interest is in eliminating you.
Austin, Milley and the clowns at DoD are hell bent on weakening and then ultimately destroying the USA. Woke military with rainbow patches probably won’t intimidate Xi.
PRESIDENT TRUMP builds our Military up and DICTATOR Beijing biden Tears it down.
We were Safe and Secure with PRESIDENT TRUMP with the #1 Economy, Energy Security, Secured Borders, and Military in the World.
With DICTATOR Beijing biden Destroying our Country and Military
I can’t even sleep anymore knowing he Bows Down to Communist China and Iran giving them everything and putting the United States last destroying US on purpose.
The ironic thing is that it’s not the fault of our soldiers that our military is less and less respected and trusted. Most of our troops are honorable and patriotic. It’s the political and military top level leaders who are ruining our military, by making decisions which are weaking our military readiness and increasing our dysfunction and wokeness.
Sadness no doubt permeates our few and real surviving veterans who fought in WW2, Korea, Viet Nam, Afghanistan. No little girlie “soldiers” just hard fighting real Americans. Buit then that’s the ultimate goal of the far left and the rinos (far worse!!) to turn the U.S. into another dictatorship and of course shove our nation into the “New World Order” spoken of so “lovingly” by Bush Sr. during his presidential acceptance speech. “We must usher in the ‘new world order’. Watched that speech. Even then just really beginning to see the beginning of our ultimate destruction, it was chilling.
I will never-ever lose my respect and confidence to those brave men and women who serve with courage in the theaters where they are sent. The Brass in Washington? That’s a different story.
I as well as most of you have never participated in any of these surveys – ever. So, who are they asking to come up with these numbers? I live near and still work at a major military instillation. The military has the same problems as the general population, the same issues but from what I see on a daily basis doesn’t alarm me. I see a multi-national Intergrated military force that adapts, overcomes and is ready. They have slackers, radicals and misfits. Not everyone in the military should be in the military and they are weeded out. We still have a lot of combat veterans standing on the wall, who have been in combat and are training our troops to survive and be victorious. I have confidence if the flag goes up our military will prevail and make up proud. I only ask, I you sent out our military to fight don’t tie their hands like we’ve done in the past. They will win the day if we let them. If you don’t want to win, don’t send out our warriors to be global policemen.
The three tenets of the Biden regime for the New World Order, destroy the economy and the military and disarm the populace. With out honest elections One World Government is possibly only one more election cycle away.
Putting confidence in anyone but God is really the true test for the strength of a nation. God doesn’t put stock in the strength of man. Look at Israel- one man can chase a thousand.
The problem is ? No problem- it’s just a matter of perspective and people’s opinion. No survey speaks for me. While the general morals and policies of our politician seek to work its schemes, there will be consequences and backlashes for this country but who knows the depth of the wisdom of God. Perhaps we’ll have a revival and things set right or we’ll become a second rate nation. Who knows? That’s said, the military is not the answer- they are a necessary evil in the wars against nations. One day that will end for everybody when Jesus returns and sets up His throne in Jerusalem.
I say to the science of data analysis, don’t trust the survey- look what happened to the ten spies and Israel who listened to them.
A judgement of 40 years for unbelief.
I believe our country still have the purpose of leading the world in spreading the Gospel and giving place for those who are persecuted for their religious beliefs as well as training up foreign ministers and sending missionaries. That’s the real strength behind our nation- God’s army.
What NORMAL person would have confidence in a military that had a DISASTER in Afghanistan, has commercials touting sex freaks rather than warriors, and has lessened training requirements to boost “diversity?”