Winter 1996
America’s Struggle Within
To order a copy, call Kathleen FitzGerald at the Pew Center, 202-331-3200.
The Pew Center commissioned “America’s Struggle Within” at the outset of the 1996 presidential cycle to establish a reference point for journalists covering the campaign. The report is an effort to learn what is on people’s minds, what their hopes are, what problems they face and what they think of the political process and of the news media that will report on the process. It is based on 15 focus groups conducted last fall by The Harwood Group in four key primary states -Iowa, New Hampshire, Florida and California.
The Pew Center, through its Citizens Election Project, hopes this 24-page report will help the news media better understand what Americans are concerned about and thus what the real issues of the campaign are. The following is a summary of the report’s conclusions.
INTRODUCTION
There is a struggle within America. People see fundamental changes taking root in American life and wonder where they will lead – for themselves and the nation. As they search for answers, people fear that they have little control over the responses.
Americans now deeply lament the state of the union. They are frustrated that the nation has not made more progress on its concerns, exasperated that America has not changed how it addresses its common challenges.
This citizen view of the union is significantly different from 1992, the last presidential election year. At that time Americans forcefully lashed out at the “political system” with raw, unmitigated anger. Now people seem to be in a more reflective, introspective mood – questioning what is happening around them, fearful of what the future holds, ambivalent about what should be done.
COMMON CONCERNS
People see two fundamental challenges before the nation – and, to them, these challenges are inextricably linked. They describe an economy that has turned into a kind of quicksand – slowly pulling some Americans under, fast endangering others. What is more, the economic rules of society seem to be grossly unfair to them – from how corporations work with their employees, to who shoulders the burden of taxes and budget sacrifices, to growing infatuation with materialism.
Americans with whom we talked are struggling. Questions abound about economic opportunity and security and the future of the American Dream. And uncertainty exists about how the nation can address its fundamental challenge of eroding families and values in American life.
The questions that people are asking themselves are just beginning to take form. They have important implications for basic relationships within society, the nature of personal responsibility, and the role of government, news media and other institutions.People are clear on their common concerns, but they’re unsure about how to act on them or are torn over what to do. They acknowledge that part of the problem has been their own failure to become involved.
SETTING A DIFFERENT COURSE
Yet this is only half the story. People do not believe that America currently has the will and the capacity to tackle the tough questions that confound the nation. They say that leadership is nowhere to be found. They see politicians engulfed by an obsession to win re-election and make personal gains rather than serve the public. They argue that news media focus too much on dirt and gossip, and that they have abandoned their public role to inform people and to act as truth tellers. And Americans say they have abdicated their own responsibility to the larger society around them.
As election ’96 approaches, these citizen voices suggest that Americans are searching for a new kind of leadership. They believe that such leadership must apply not only to politicians, but to news media, citizens, and others. People argue that basic changes must occur in how individuals and institutions act if American is to set the right course for the future.
America’s Struggle Within is organized in four sections. Following the Introduction above are:
Los Angeles, CA
Modesto, CA
San Diego, CA
San Francisco, CA
Jacksonville, FL
Miami, FL
Tallahassee, FL
Tampa, FL
Orlando, FL
Davenport, IA
Des Moines, IA
Mason City, IA
Claremont, NH
Laconia, NH
Nashua, NH