Losing trust

Our federal government can continue to function even with highly unpopular positions.

Our federal government can continue to function even with partisan bickering, major social divisions and slow erosions of personal freedoms.

But a federal government cannot continue to function when it loses the trust of the American public.

Near the end of the George W. Bush administration, a string of disappointments in the Middle East and a flagging economy eroded the trust of the American public.

That set the stage for the 2008 elections and the now-famous and much-maligned hope and change.

And now -- more failures in the Middle East, an economy in uber-slow "recovery" and a host of concerning revelations about government abuses -- hope and change have given way to concern and mistrust.

This president would much rather promote his health- care fiasco and continue to fan the flames of the racial divide than address the economy.

And when those failures become abundantly obvious, he tries to "reboot" the economic discussion as he will attempt this week.

Who can blame him for ignoring the stagnant economy?

When the sole source of achievement is an expansion of federal spending to fuel this false economy, anyone would rather change the subject.

Trust allows us to look past speed bumps that run afoul of our collective optimism.

But put enough road bumps in our path and we begin to question why anyone would have trust in the first place.

You can lack confidence -- as many do -- and still have trust.

But once trust is lost, it is not restored with arrogance, hubris and partisan gamesmanship.

That message is lost on some. And simply ignored by others.

Michael Jensen is the publisher of the Sikeston Standard Democrat.