ABSTRACT
In his book The Power to Lead, James MacGregor Burns observed that “[l]eaders themselves are turning against aspects of the political system, in part because it makes leadership so difficult.” Unlike Vivien Hart, who concluded that decisionmakers did not initially recognize the seriousness of rising mistrust, Karl Lamb found political leaders to be aware of—and legitimately concerned about—the problem but uncertain as to what steps might be taken to regain the public’s confidence. Less scientific but closer to home was William Greider’s assertion that alienation “runs both ways” in the United States: Politicians are held in contempt by the public. Like his Democratic colleague, Representative R was critical of both the general public and the leaders themselves. Few could appreciate how unhappy many Americans had become with the performance and the seeming inaccessibility of their governmental leaders and institutions, much less anticipate that matters might get worse before they got better.
