Big government

GALLUP: TWO-THIRDS SAY FED. GOV'T 'TOO BIG, POWERFUL'

Nearly two-thirds of Americans believe that the federal government is too big and powerful and are dissatisfied with how the government is working. 

Gallup released its "Mood of the Nation" poll yesterday, conducted between January 5-8, finding that 66% of Americans are "unhappy with the size and power of the federal government." This number has been the roughly the same for the last three years after jumping 10 percentage points between 2008 and 2011. In addition, 65% of Americans "are dissatisfied with the nation's system of government and how well it works, the highest percentage in Gallup's trend since 2001."

The poll found that "Republicans and independents are largely responsible for the overall decrease in satisfaction with government effectiveness in recent years," and "satisfaction among Republicans and independents began to wane during President George W. Bush's final year in office," which was also when the Tea Party movement started to form in response to the big-government programs of the Bush administration. 

The poll also found that Republicans and independents have become even more dissatisfied with government since President Barack Obama got elected in 2008 while Democrats' satisfaction has remained steady since 2004. Gallup found that "satisfaction among independents, meanwhile, has gone down 10 percentage points" since 2004.  

The polling organization noted that this climate will make it difficult for President Barack Obama to push for more government programs during his final years in office.