American poll: New low for government trust

Less than half of Americans trust the government to handle problems, an all-time low, according to a new poll. Just 49 percent of Americans said they had a great deal or fair amount of confidence in the federal government to handle international problems, according to a Gallup poll released Friday. The previous low was 51 percent in 2007. The public’s trust is even lower when it comes to domestic issues. Just 42 percent of Americans answered with a great deal or fair amount of confidence in the government to handle issues at home, one point below the previous low from 2011. Democrats have far more confidence in the government than Republicans: 78 percent of Dems trust the government on international issues compared to just 35 percent of Republicans. Democrats don’t have nearly as much faith when it comes to domestic issues, though, with 58 percent saying they have a great deal or fair amount of confidence compared to 25 percent of Republicans. "Americans’ trust and confidence in the federal government’s ability to solve problems internationally as well as domestically has fallen to historic lows this year," Gallup said. "There are a number of possible explanations for this loss of confidence: controversy surrounding potential US action in Syria, an enduring low assessment of the state of the economy, or low levels of confidence in Congress." The poll surveyed 1,510 adults from Sept 5-8 with a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.