For people able to read, and with an interest, the information regarding covid and boosters was fairly transparent and readily available. The vaccines were safe and effective, contrails are not laced with chemicals, and there is no Charlie Kirk conspiracy.
Trust in Government : Financial Corruption (USAID, Somalis, etc)
1:1
When we see the corruption, see Pelosi out invested ALL of Wall St (including hedge funds), the per capita income of DC being the HIGHEST in the nation and hear that the estimate of 35% of the Federal Budget goes to corruption - it makes us lose trust in government - and rightfully so.
There is only one thing I can be certain of. The government is lying to us. Given the fact that the duly elected President can not fire anyone in the executive branch without the approval of some unelected judge the real power lies inside the bureaucracy and it’s only goal is to grow and expand till it consumes all power and all money and even then it will not stop because it will just print more
What this data points to is a deeper problem in how the system produces and communicates reality. A healthy national system depends on three layers working together:
- measures the ability to accurately count and assess what is happening, whether that’s inflation, crime, immigration, or public health
- Translation, the ability to communicate those measurements in a way that is clear, honest, and actually understandable
- Lived experience alignment, how closely official claims match what people are seeing and feeling in their daily lives
When these three layers drift out of alignment, trust doesn’t just decline, it starts to fragment.
At that point, people begin to believe one or more of the following:
1. the government is measuring reality incorrectly
2. the government is selectively presenting or spinning accurate data
3. the government is measuring the wrong things, missing what actually matters
4. the government is technically truthful, but still giving a misleading overall picture
Once those beliefs take hold at scale, the problem becomes systemic. Even when the information is accurate, it is no longer trusted. Public debate stops being about “what should we do?” and turns into “what is even real?” That’s the deeper risk. The system starts to lose its ability to generate shared, usable reality.
And when official measurement, official messaging, and lived experience no longer line up closely enough, government can’t function effectively, because coordination, policy, and accountability all depend on some basic agreement about facts.
So rebuilding trust isn’t mainly about better messaging or even just more transparency. It requires restoring alignment across all three layers, so that what is measured is credible, what is communicated makes sense, and what is said actually matches what people experience. Until that alignment is restored, trust is going to remain fragile, no matter which party is in power.
It would be interesting to compare Americans trust in government agencies with the number of public contacts with an agency each year. My guess it the more contacts with an agency the lower level of trust. When a person has an issue with an agency (say the Judicial System vs National Park Service) they may or may not be pleased with the experiences. The more contacts the greater the chance of a complaint. And the fact that most agencies have a monopoly; taxation, power to arrest, etc. The low level of trust may just be a symptom of friction when in contact with a government function.
The smaller the government, probably the higher the trust. Fewer contacts, less friction.
Often enough the government doesn't do what polling tells us numerous times, the public wants the government to do. Our legislators are bought.
That said I like the government much better than any of the thousands of non governmental groups a lot of the work of government is farmed out to. NGOs answer to no one, serve as employers when patronage jobs lose elections, and salaries are sky high for people required to do nothing.
I'd also like to put in a word for the state department. Great folks who work in the embassies, a god send when things to to hell on the other side of the world. I'm fine with BLS data too. The old INS bent over backwards to help me out, no complaints there.
Great post! You are 100% correct that the plague is on both our houses and that partisanship on both sides is ruining what should always be a neutrally provided government service (neutral here meaning efficient and effective, not hobbled by one party or another counting on Agency X as a gravy train, scapegoat, etc.). Would that those legislators who turn federal offices into political footballs were promptly voted out of office. Unfortunately, there are enough voters (or even just a few of them who make all the noise) who agree that everything should be about "our side" winning and reward such politicizing from leadership. Thank you for this excellent essay!
Fascinating, although I wish the survey had asked the public about the US Postal Service. Historically, Americans have overwhelmingly liked it---not least because it is a service they do not pay taxes to support!
Great piece. However, I take issue with the claim that the DHS shutdown is "basically for no reason and no discernible outcome other than partisan spite." After two protesters were killed by ICE, and ICE agents demonstrated a habit of racial profiling, Democrats want to reform ICE for very good reason.
Maybe if those two people had not attempted to run over the ICE officer or two carried a firearm to a peaceful demonstration they would both still be here. Both outcomes were tragic but the Governor of Minnesota brought this result by failing to give ICE police protection so they could do their jobs and get rid of the illegals immigrants who are raping killing and stealing the actual citizens of the United States
The deaths of the two (2) ORGANIZED AND TRAINED anti-ICE protestors in Minneapolis is directly attributable to the policies of Governor Walz and mayor Frey to defy and impede immigration enforcement.
Since those two (2) regrettable events in MN, state-county-and-local law enforcement are now detaining wanted individuals and turning them over to ICE at county detention centers.
Do you WANT another American Civil War, with state and local officials defying federal law on border security ?!?
Donald Trump and the Republicans won in 2024 largely due to uncontrolled illegal immigration under President Autopen !
Now Customs and Border Protection have just arrested 300 Iranian sleeper agents attempting to cross the Southern border.
Do you WANT LAWLESSNESS ? Do you WANT drug trafficking ? Do you WANT human trafficking ?
ICE has had millions interactions with people the past year. 1 heavily armed man who did not identity himself as a Conceal Carrier, as required by law, was shot being taken into custody. A woman repeatedly refused to comply with explicit instructions from a federal agent to exit her automobile. She regrettably lost their life attempting to flee the scene of obstructing an agent performing his duties.
The tragic loss of life should be investigated and any applicable charges filed, but based on the number of encounters and the personal behavior of the deceased, the 2 deaths do not seem that hard to comprehend. By comparison, in Texas alone 50-70 Texans, or more, annually lose their lives to people dwelling illegally, either thru intent or negligence.
Much of the demand to reform or end ICE is really a desire for Open Borders or the end of all interior enforcement. The latter would render the US, the World's home base. Any non violent world resident that reached US soil, could stay forever. No waiting in line, no vetting, no valid asylum claim or economic self sufficiency required.
Reformers demanding judicial warrants do not understand the law. The ability to procure a federal warrant is limited to federal crimes. Many serious felonies, that automatically result in deportation, are not federal crimes. Requiring a judicial warrant for each deportation is, in actuality, the end of most immigration enforcement.
Moreover, currently more than 1.5 million people in the US already possess Final Orders of Deportation. They had their day in Immigration Court, lost and now refuse to exit the US.
Roughly another 1.5 million people have been previously deported. They are automatically subject to expedited removal, via their physical presence. No other due process required.
Another 2 million or so, did not enter thru a Valid Port of Entry, or cure the violation by promptly surrendering to Immigration. Absent exigent circumstances, they lost their ability to claim asylum, via their entry. They are also subject to expedited removal.
Of the roughly 5 million people, legally subject to expedited removal, how many would Dems actually deport?
Democrats always have good intentions, but they are weak at choosing policies that will work to achieve the goal. Instead of reforming ICE, the shutdown has only managed to produce 3 hour security lines at major airports. Nobody wants to hear about good intentions when this is the result.
The long lines at airports are because TSA is part of DHS. Democrats in Congress have repeatedly proposed funding all of DHS apart from ICE and CBP to avoid allowing the conflict over ICE to create negative impacts such as TSA dysfunction. (Most Democrats in Congress would now agree to fund CBP s well.) Republicans have voted down every attempt because they believe (perhaps correctly) the anger of people towards TSA dysfunction is politically advantageous to them.
The Democrats in Congress are not trying to defund ICE. They are using the little leverage they have to try to get a set of reforms, particularly including the end of warrantless arrests, masking, and lack of identification by ICE agents, practices that have never been deployed in earlier immigration efforts, from "Operation Wetback" until the present.
As is well known, at its peak the Obama Administration deported immigrants illegally in the US at a higher rate than ICE under Trump II. The tactic of anonymity and legally tenuous detainment policies are gratuitous features of the current administration's approach to the enforcement of immigration law and they have only served to increase public opposition and threaten to set precedents undermining all of our protections against government incursions on our rights. The GOP's unwillingness to accept ICE reform seems to me a failure of principled conservative vigilance against arbitrary use of sanctioned government powers. Sometimes the Democrats' legislative strategies are purely performative, but I think the current case is not: it reflects libertarian principles that should transcend party lines.
And yet, the only thing accomplished with this tactic is to produce 3 hour TSA lines at airports.
As I said, good intentions are not enough. I think it’s a serious miscalculation to believe people are willing to put up this as long as Democrats explain their noble efforts to protect illegal immigrants.
Yikes! I never go on Bluesky, gross. What I wrote above is based on my own observations :) Let me change what I said. Perhaps Democrats in Congress do not want to reform ICE for very good reason. I, as a voter, do want ICE to be reformed, badly.
I cannot say I am surprised. If anything, I am surprised that trust in institutions like the FDA and the CDC is as high as these numbers. The previous gang at the Biden FDA and CDC lied so consistently throughout the Covid years that I can only assume there are a lot of very stupid Americans. And as it is becoming clearer that most social safety net programs are rife with fraud on an industrial scale, trust in those programs is going to evaporate as well.
Part of the problem is that Democrats seem to be unwilling to even contemplate programs that might rebuild trust. Their first (and often only) response is to scream "nothing to see here; move along!" I am not much of a conspiracy person but I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that voter fraud must be a significant problem given how fiercely Democrats are fighting even the most banal of proposals. Everybody in the USA has ID of some sort and everybody has fingerprints and a biometric unique identity. So come up with a reasonable set of rules that make it no harder to vote than to buy alcohol and cut a deal. If Americans cannot trust that the voting process is legitimate, it is hard to have any trust in government.
> I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that voter fraud must be a significant problem given how fiercely Democrats are fighting even the most banal of proposals.
We needed ID and proof of vaccination to eat at restaurants during Covid. This video is also revealing of Democratic racism "black people don't know how to use the internet so they can't get ID"
I agree requiring ID to vote makes sense, but the requirements in the SAVE Act as it stands are too restrictive. A passport or birth certificate?! I have no idea where my birth certificate is (maybe I'm in the minority here, not sure) and half of Americans don't have a passport. Driver's licenses should be sufficient ID at registration.
My state has periodic exhaustive audits of our voting because we have mail in ballots which both parties really like. We have found almost no fraud, the only issue of late was a local election official trying to gain access to electronic machines, she was a Trump supporter and is now in jail. Both parties here support honest voting.
We do require some sort of ID for in person voting, most use a driver's license. We also give out licenses to illegal aliens, which I wish would end. The license for those here illegally is not a "real ID"
Illegals in Oregon are given driver’s licenses and I’m sure they are not the only state who does that. I also have a passport and a birth certificate sitting in a safe at home. It’s not really that hard to take care of stuff like that - voting should take a little effort and feel like a privilege even though it is a right.
I would be happy with a state ID provided that the actual vote registration include a fingerprint. That would permit a verification of eligibility if challenged. Blue states would have to tighten their rules for IDs, i.e., they cannot continue to hand out IDs to illegal immigrants. And the law should increase the penalties for illegal voting.
For what it's worth, the requirements for any kind of ID, residence permit, work permit, etc., etc. in other countries for immigrants and for locals is much stricter than in the USA. To get a residence card in Italy, an Italian citizen has to provide their date and place of birth and that gets checked before the ID is issued. Non Italians also have to provide a valid home address which is checked by an unannounced police visit to confirm residence. Since all US births are recorded as well, it is a fairly straightforward process to get a birth certificate. For various reasons, I have obtained birth certificates for my parents, my children, my wife and myself over the last 20 years. So the idea that an American cannot produce a birth certificate is a straw man argument. If you object to the fee for obtaining a birth certificate, the law could provide that the state issuing the ID should pay the fee.
These are some very interesting statistics. Remember, we are NOT supposed to trust our governments. Our founding fathers well knew what happens when people don't strive to keep control of government. Governments are NOT self-limiting, it's up to us to control them.
"Federal workers do the business of the American people mostly well and mostly without complaint. " You could say as much for the Nazis under Hitler, or the communists under Mao and Stalin. I know plenty of government workers, and I have mostly good things to say about them. On the other hand, DC is out of control. DC is a city of bureaucrats who have more control over government than the elected officials.
Federal authorization is limited to about five enumerated powers. All else is overreach and extraconstitutional. Beyond those five, additional nanny statism should be limited to thst voted by the people locally or in the individual states. Government positions are overpaid and benefits are ridiculous. Too often the roles are nothing more than workfare filled by unqualified DEI hires. You wonder why we don't trust government? Have you ever had to work with any agency at any level? Born free, taxed to death.
Trust the vaccines! They’re safe and effective! You just need infinity boosters and you’ll still get Covid anyway!
What a joke that was.
For people able to read, and with an interest, the information regarding covid and boosters was fairly transparent and readily available. The vaccines were safe and effective, contrails are not laced with chemicals, and there is no Charlie Kirk conspiracy.
Somebody quipped that people are sick of paying a Swedish level of taxes for a Somali level of services.
Trust in Government : Financial Corruption (USAID, Somalis, etc)
1:1
When we see the corruption, see Pelosi out invested ALL of Wall St (including hedge funds), the per capita income of DC being the HIGHEST in the nation and hear that the estimate of 35% of the Federal Budget goes to corruption - it makes us lose trust in government - and rightfully so.
There is only one thing I can be certain of. The government is lying to us. Given the fact that the duly elected President can not fire anyone in the executive branch without the approval of some unelected judge the real power lies inside the bureaucracy and it’s only goal is to grow and expand till it consumes all power and all money and even then it will not stop because it will just print more
What this data points to is a deeper problem in how the system produces and communicates reality. A healthy national system depends on three layers working together:
- measures the ability to accurately count and assess what is happening, whether that’s inflation, crime, immigration, or public health
- Translation, the ability to communicate those measurements in a way that is clear, honest, and actually understandable
- Lived experience alignment, how closely official claims match what people are seeing and feeling in their daily lives
When these three layers drift out of alignment, trust doesn’t just decline, it starts to fragment.
At that point, people begin to believe one or more of the following:
1. the government is measuring reality incorrectly
2. the government is selectively presenting or spinning accurate data
3. the government is measuring the wrong things, missing what actually matters
4. the government is technically truthful, but still giving a misleading overall picture
Once those beliefs take hold at scale, the problem becomes systemic. Even when the information is accurate, it is no longer trusted. Public debate stops being about “what should we do?” and turns into “what is even real?” That’s the deeper risk. The system starts to lose its ability to generate shared, usable reality.
And when official measurement, official messaging, and lived experience no longer line up closely enough, government can’t function effectively, because coordination, policy, and accountability all depend on some basic agreement about facts.
So rebuilding trust isn’t mainly about better messaging or even just more transparency. It requires restoring alignment across all three layers, so that what is measured is credible, what is communicated makes sense, and what is said actually matches what people experience. Until that alignment is restored, trust is going to remain fragile, no matter which party is in power.
It would be interesting to compare Americans trust in government agencies with the number of public contacts with an agency each year. My guess it the more contacts with an agency the lower level of trust. When a person has an issue with an agency (say the Judicial System vs National Park Service) they may or may not be pleased with the experiences. The more contacts the greater the chance of a complaint. And the fact that most agencies have a monopoly; taxation, power to arrest, etc. The low level of trust may just be a symptom of friction when in contact with a government function.
The smaller the government, probably the higher the trust. Fewer contacts, less friction.
Often enough the government doesn't do what polling tells us numerous times, the public wants the government to do. Our legislators are bought.
That said I like the government much better than any of the thousands of non governmental groups a lot of the work of government is farmed out to. NGOs answer to no one, serve as employers when patronage jobs lose elections, and salaries are sky high for people required to do nothing.
I'd also like to put in a word for the state department. Great folks who work in the embassies, a god send when things to to hell on the other side of the world. I'm fine with BLS data too. The old INS bent over backwards to help me out, no complaints there.
Great post! You are 100% correct that the plague is on both our houses and that partisanship on both sides is ruining what should always be a neutrally provided government service (neutral here meaning efficient and effective, not hobbled by one party or another counting on Agency X as a gravy train, scapegoat, etc.). Would that those legislators who turn federal offices into political footballs were promptly voted out of office. Unfortunately, there are enough voters (or even just a few of them who make all the noise) who agree that everything should be about "our side" winning and reward such politicizing from leadership. Thank you for this excellent essay!
Fascinating, although I wish the survey had asked the public about the US Postal Service. Historically, Americans have overwhelmingly liked it---not least because it is a service they do not pay taxes to support!
The SEC and IRS also take in more than they cost.
Great piece. However, I take issue with the claim that the DHS shutdown is "basically for no reason and no discernible outcome other than partisan spite." After two protesters were killed by ICE, and ICE agents demonstrated a habit of racial profiling, Democrats want to reform ICE for very good reason.
Maybe if those two people had not attempted to run over the ICE officer or two carried a firearm to a peaceful demonstration they would both still be here. Both outcomes were tragic but the Governor of Minnesota brought this result by failing to give ICE police protection so they could do their jobs and get rid of the illegals immigrants who are raping killing and stealing the actual citizens of the United States
Bunk.
The deaths of the two (2) ORGANIZED AND TRAINED anti-ICE protestors in Minneapolis is directly attributable to the policies of Governor Walz and mayor Frey to defy and impede immigration enforcement.
Since those two (2) regrettable events in MN, state-county-and-local law enforcement are now detaining wanted individuals and turning them over to ICE at county detention centers.
Do you WANT another American Civil War, with state and local officials defying federal law on border security ?!?
Donald Trump and the Republicans won in 2024 largely due to uncontrolled illegal immigration under President Autopen !
Now Customs and Border Protection have just arrested 300 Iranian sleeper agents attempting to cross the Southern border.
Do you WANT LAWLESSNESS ? Do you WANT drug trafficking ? Do you WANT human trafficking ?
ICE has had millions interactions with people the past year. 1 heavily armed man who did not identity himself as a Conceal Carrier, as required by law, was shot being taken into custody. A woman repeatedly refused to comply with explicit instructions from a federal agent to exit her automobile. She regrettably lost their life attempting to flee the scene of obstructing an agent performing his duties.
The tragic loss of life should be investigated and any applicable charges filed, but based on the number of encounters and the personal behavior of the deceased, the 2 deaths do not seem that hard to comprehend. By comparison, in Texas alone 50-70 Texans, or more, annually lose their lives to people dwelling illegally, either thru intent or negligence.
Much of the demand to reform or end ICE is really a desire for Open Borders or the end of all interior enforcement. The latter would render the US, the World's home base. Any non violent world resident that reached US soil, could stay forever. No waiting in line, no vetting, no valid asylum claim or economic self sufficiency required.
Reformers demanding judicial warrants do not understand the law. The ability to procure a federal warrant is limited to federal crimes. Many serious felonies, that automatically result in deportation, are not federal crimes. Requiring a judicial warrant for each deportation is, in actuality, the end of most immigration enforcement.
Moreover, currently more than 1.5 million people in the US already possess Final Orders of Deportation. They had their day in Immigration Court, lost and now refuse to exit the US.
Roughly another 1.5 million people have been previously deported. They are automatically subject to expedited removal, via their physical presence. No other due process required.
Another 2 million or so, did not enter thru a Valid Port of Entry, or cure the violation by promptly surrendering to Immigration. Absent exigent circumstances, they lost their ability to claim asylum, via their entry. They are also subject to expedited removal.
Of the roughly 5 million people, legally subject to expedited removal, how many would Dems actually deport?
It’s not enough to have good intentions.
Democrats always have good intentions, but they are weak at choosing policies that will work to achieve the goal. Instead of reforming ICE, the shutdown has only managed to produce 3 hour security lines at major airports. Nobody wants to hear about good intentions when this is the result.
"Democrats always have good intentions"
Good one!
Agree. Let me rephrase. They always say they have good intentions…
The long lines at airports are because TSA is part of DHS. Democrats in Congress have repeatedly proposed funding all of DHS apart from ICE and CBP to avoid allowing the conflict over ICE to create negative impacts such as TSA dysfunction. (Most Democrats in Congress would now agree to fund CBP s well.) Republicans have voted down every attempt because they believe (perhaps correctly) the anger of people towards TSA dysfunction is politically advantageous to them.
Yes, the long lines are because TSA is part of DHS.
ICE is not affected by the shutdown because their funding was already established by the BBB.
Maybe good intentions, but taking action that will not accomplish what they claim they are looking for.
The Democrats in Congress are not trying to defund ICE. They are using the little leverage they have to try to get a set of reforms, particularly including the end of warrantless arrests, masking, and lack of identification by ICE agents, practices that have never been deployed in earlier immigration efforts, from "Operation Wetback" until the present.
As is well known, at its peak the Obama Administration deported immigrants illegally in the US at a higher rate than ICE under Trump II. The tactic of anonymity and legally tenuous detainment policies are gratuitous features of the current administration's approach to the enforcement of immigration law and they have only served to increase public opposition and threaten to set precedents undermining all of our protections against government incursions on our rights. The GOP's unwillingness to accept ICE reform seems to me a failure of principled conservative vigilance against arbitrary use of sanctioned government powers. Sometimes the Democrats' legislative strategies are purely performative, but I think the current case is not: it reflects libertarian principles that should transcend party lines.
And yet, the only thing accomplished with this tactic is to produce 3 hour TSA lines at airports.
As I said, good intentions are not enough. I think it’s a serious miscalculation to believe people are willing to put up this as long as Democrats explain their noble efforts to protect illegal immigrants.
I don't think Bluesky is a reliable source.
Yikes! I never go on Bluesky, gross. What I wrote above is based on my own observations :) Let me change what I said. Perhaps Democrats in Congress do not want to reform ICE for very good reason. I, as a voter, do want ICE to be reformed, badly.
I cannot say I am surprised. If anything, I am surprised that trust in institutions like the FDA and the CDC is as high as these numbers. The previous gang at the Biden FDA and CDC lied so consistently throughout the Covid years that I can only assume there are a lot of very stupid Americans. And as it is becoming clearer that most social safety net programs are rife with fraud on an industrial scale, trust in those programs is going to evaporate as well.
Part of the problem is that Democrats seem to be unwilling to even contemplate programs that might rebuild trust. Their first (and often only) response is to scream "nothing to see here; move along!" I am not much of a conspiracy person but I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that voter fraud must be a significant problem given how fiercely Democrats are fighting even the most banal of proposals. Everybody in the USA has ID of some sort and everybody has fingerprints and a biometric unique identity. So come up with a reasonable set of rules that make it no harder to vote than to buy alcohol and cut a deal. If Americans cannot trust that the voting process is legitimate, it is hard to have any trust in government.
> I have reluctantly come to the conclusion that voter fraud must be a significant problem given how fiercely Democrats are fighting even the most banal of proposals.
We needed ID and proof of vaccination to eat at restaurants during Covid. This video is also revealing of Democratic racism "black people don't know how to use the internet so they can't get ID"
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yW2LpFkVfYk
"Their first (and often only) response is to scream 'nothing to see here; move along!'"
I'd say their first (and often only) response is to scream Racism! and/or Whiteness! and/or Transphobe, etc.
I agree requiring ID to vote makes sense, but the requirements in the SAVE Act as it stands are too restrictive. A passport or birth certificate?! I have no idea where my birth certificate is (maybe I'm in the minority here, not sure) and half of Americans don't have a passport. Driver's licenses should be sufficient ID at registration.
My state has periodic exhaustive audits of our voting because we have mail in ballots which both parties really like. We have found almost no fraud, the only issue of late was a local election official trying to gain access to electronic machines, she was a Trump supporter and is now in jail. Both parties here support honest voting.
We do require some sort of ID for in person voting, most use a driver's license. We also give out licenses to illegal aliens, which I wish would end. The license for those here illegally is not a "real ID"
Illegals in Oregon are given driver’s licenses and I’m sure they are not the only state who does that. I also have a passport and a birth certificate sitting in a safe at home. It’s not really that hard to take care of stuff like that - voting should take a little effort and feel like a privilege even though it is a right.
Millions of non citizens have Driver's licenses that look exactly like those of US citizens.
Another example of Democrats promoting ideas that won’t achieve the stated desired result.
I would be happy with a state ID provided that the actual vote registration include a fingerprint. That would permit a verification of eligibility if challenged. Blue states would have to tighten their rules for IDs, i.e., they cannot continue to hand out IDs to illegal immigrants. And the law should increase the penalties for illegal voting.
For what it's worth, the requirements for any kind of ID, residence permit, work permit, etc., etc. in other countries for immigrants and for locals is much stricter than in the USA. To get a residence card in Italy, an Italian citizen has to provide their date and place of birth and that gets checked before the ID is issued. Non Italians also have to provide a valid home address which is checked by an unannounced police visit to confirm residence. Since all US births are recorded as well, it is a fairly straightforward process to get a birth certificate. For various reasons, I have obtained birth certificates for my parents, my children, my wife and myself over the last 20 years. So the idea that an American cannot produce a birth certificate is a straw man argument. If you object to the fee for obtaining a birth certificate, the law could provide that the state issuing the ID should pay the fee.
These are some very interesting statistics. Remember, we are NOT supposed to trust our governments. Our founding fathers well knew what happens when people don't strive to keep control of government. Governments are NOT self-limiting, it's up to us to control them.
"Federal workers do the business of the American people mostly well and mostly without complaint. " You could say as much for the Nazis under Hitler, or the communists under Mao and Stalin. I know plenty of government workers, and I have mostly good things to say about them. On the other hand, DC is out of control. DC is a city of bureaucrats who have more control over government than the elected officials.
Federal authorization is limited to about five enumerated powers. All else is overreach and extraconstitutional. Beyond those five, additional nanny statism should be limited to thst voted by the people locally or in the individual states. Government positions are overpaid and benefits are ridiculous. Too often the roles are nothing more than workfare filled by unqualified DEI hires. You wonder why we don't trust government? Have you ever had to work with any agency at any level? Born free, taxed to death.