Stat Of The Week: Public Confidence In SCOTUS At Historic Low

Less than one-third of U.S. citizens express confidence in our highest court.

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In the wake of the news of Scalia’s death, we, as a nation, observed a period of solemn reflection or, at least, respectful silence. After those dignified 15 seconds were up, the Democrats and Republicans began “carping about the replacement process and hurling invective like a troop of howler monkeys playing with its own feces.”

Small wonder that Americans are less likely than ever to affiliate themselves with either party. Partisan identification is it at or near historic lows: in Gallup’s latest polling, a mere 26 percent of Americans identify as Republicans and 29 percent as Democrats. Along with this decline in party affiliation, comes a general weakening of American faith in its national institutions. According to the Gallup data, our confidence in national institutions (excepting the military and small businesses) is below historical norms. (See chart below.) This unfortunately includes the U.S. Supreme Court, for which less than one-third of citizens declare “a great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence. Note that this data is from June 2015; it is impossible to imagine that subsequent events will have reversed this trend.

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(gavel bang: Nick Gillespie at Reason’s Hit & Run blog)

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