Most Americans think the U.S. has already seen its best days, according to a new poll released ahead of the country’s 250th anniversary.
Fifty-eight percent of adults across different states and political backgrounds say the country’s best years are in the past, whereas 38 percent are positive that there are better years to come, according to a new NBC News poll of 3,000 U.S. adults.
The poll revealed how many Americans have little faith in their institutions, and that most people, across all generations, political parties and backgrounds, believe that the “American Dream” is harder to achieve now than it was a generation ago.
Seventy-eight percent of adults surveyed say the American Dream is further out of reach, while five percent say it’s easier and 16 percent say the degree of difficulty is about the same, according to the poll.
The largely pessimistic poll responses come as the Trump administration gears up to celebrate America’s 250th birthday next month — as well as President Donald Trump’s 80th birthday — by holding a massive UFC match on the White House’s South Lawn on Sunday.
Most Americans, 52 percent, said they have “very little” confidence or “none at all” in the federal government, compared to 34 percent in 2016.
Even more, about 56 percent, feel the same way about Congress, compared to 48 percent in 2019 and 39 percent in 2016, according to the poll.
Meanwhile, the military, which consistently is seen as one of the institutions with the confidence of most Americans, has seen a considerable drop in support. Sixty percent of those polled said they have a great deal or quite a bit of confidence in U.S. forces.
However, that number is 13 percentage points less since the question was asked in December 2016, according to the poll.
Americans are also feeling more wary of national news media, with 64 percent of respondents — nearly two-thirds — saying they have little or no confidence in the news media, while only 11 say they have “a great deal” or “quite a bit” of confidence.”
Additionally, only 36 percent of adults expressed significant confidence in colleges and 30 percent in public schools, per the poll.
The high-tech industry has also seen a decrease in support. A decade ago, 45 percent of adults said they have significant confidence in the industry, whereas now, 38 percent said they have little or no confidence in the industry.
The poll found that most adults in the U.S. are not proud to be an American.
Only about 33 percent say they are “extremely proud” to be an American, while 23 percent say they are “very proud.” In comparison, 21 percent say they are “only a little” or “not at all” proud to be an American, according to the poll.
Despite the largely pessimistic answers, most Americans feel the country has done an alright job meeting the ideals on which it was founded. About 29 percent say the U.S. has done a great deal, while 41 percent said the country has done a fair amount to live up to those principles.
Meanwhile, 24 percent said the country has not done very much, while 5 percent said the U.S. has not lived up to its ideals at all.
About half of the adults surveyed said they felt the Constitution “stood the test of time” while 28 percent said the Constitution needs to be “thoroughly revised” to “fit present needs.” Another 18 percent say the document is “completely outmoded” and that the U.S. will eventually need “a new form of government,” according to the poll.
Even with the negativity, most Americans who responded to the poll believe more unites them than divides them.
Fifty-four percent of respondents said their view is that “most Americans share the same core values but disagree about policies and issues,” compared to 44 percent who said most Americans have “fundamentally different core values.”
