Americans' trust in US military is in downward spiral: Poll

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The Ronald Reagan Institute published in November the results of its annual poll on Americans' trust in the US military and, as expected, the results are disappointing. 

Preliminary figures show that 48% of participants expressed "a great deal of trust and confidence" in the military, a staggering drop compared to 70% in 2017.

This could possibly explain why the military missed its recruitment target by 25% this year.

The reasons for this are diverse, but according to poll results, 62% say that politicization of the military leadership is responsible for this - overall comprising 65% of Republican participants, 60% of Democrats, and 60% of Independents.

What this means is that the US army has lost its apolitical status. It consistently advocates for and defends partisan political positions and fortunes.

An apolitical, nonpartisan military is supposedly one of the norms underpinning American democracy and a feature of American military professionalism.

But in light of the recent political rift between Democrats and Republicans, it is clear to see why the US army is no longer serving primary responsibility for maintaining its apolitical character.

Other causes for overall depreciation in public confidence include weak performance/competence of the commander-in-chief, namely the president of the US.

About 60% of respondents identified this to be a determining cause.

On November 9, results of an exit poll conducted for news networks by Edison Research revealed that more than 7 in 10 people indicated they were not happy with the way things are going in the nation, and almost a third said they were not just unhappy but angry about it.

Nearly equal to then-Donald Trump's 45% popularity rating among 2018 midterm voters, Biden's approval rating among voters in this year's election is at 45%. And voters in this election were more than twice as likely to strongly disapprove of Biden as they were to strongly approve of him.

Civilian leadership was also listed as another cause, with 55% of respondents saying the performance and competence of the military’s civilian leadership, meaning the Secretary of Defense and civilian leadership at the Department of Defense, decreased their confidence in the military. 

Another reason for confidence depreciation is the failures of wars in Afghanistan and Iraq with 47% of respondents citing it as a reason. 

The US wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which are interpreted as embarrassing "failures", were, in reality, purposeful in destroying the civilian and military infrastructures of those two specific countries. 

This is evidenced by the numerous war crimes documents that were gathered by Wikileaks. 

Only 50% of those participants said they have great trust in the military to keep them safe, compared to 57% last year. When asked if the ability to win a future war is a reason for low confidence levels, 52% responded positively.

When asked if the military was performing in a "professional and non-political manner," only 35% responded yes, compared to 40% the year prior.

The survey likewise found that only 13% of Americans aged 18 to 29 are "highly willing" to join the Armed Forces.

Yesterday, former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo wrote a tweet blaming the Biden administration over such an outcome.

This is a direct result of the Biden Administration's policies. And it's a threat to our national security.https://t.co/V7Wy7psDfZ

— Mike Pompeo (@mikepompeo) December 1, 2022

The report referred to in Pompeo's tweet and published by Fox News regarding the poll results highlighted that the military was overly politicized and too "woke" - meaning that it undermines military readiness in various ways. It undermines cohesiveness by emphasizing differences based on race, ethnicity, and sex.

Poll results show that half of the respondents expressed concern over "woke" practices in the military, mostly Republicans.

So, is it really the case that Biden is responsible for the politicization of the military institution, as Pompeo stated?

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