According to the most recent Gallup Poll, confidence in Congress as an institution is at an all-time low. According to Gallup:

Gallup’s 2010 Confidence in Institutions poll finds Congress ranking dead last out of the 16 institutions rated this year. Eleven percent of Americans say they have a great deal or quite a lot of confidence in Congress, down from 17% in 2009 and a percentage point lower than the previous low for Congress, recorded in 2008.

Underscoring Congress’ image problem, half of Americans now say they have “very little” or no confidence in Congress, up from 38% in 2009 — and the highest for any institution since Gallup first asked this question in 1973.

This year’s poll also finds a 15-point drop in high confidence in the presidency, to 36 percent from 51 percent in June 2009. Over the same period, President Barack Obama’s approval rating fell by 11 points, from 58 percent to 47 percent.

This will obviously have spillover effects in the midterm elections. This is also a terrific repudiation of the stewardship of Democrats in Congress and the Obama presidency. More broadly, though, what we are witnessing is a massive leakage of confidence in our governing institutions.

The public’s critical assessment is fully warranted, but it is also disturbing. Any time a free society experiences alienation of this degree between the citizenry and its governing institutions, it is corrosive. A republic like ours is founded on a basic level of confidence and trust in our political institutions. When that collapses, lots of bad things can spring up.

In his Farewell Address, President Washington said:

This government, the offspring of our own choice uninfluenced and unawed… has a just claim to your confidence and your support. Respect for its authority, compliance with its laws, acquiescence in its measures are duties enjoined by the fundamental maxims of true liberty.

Today respect for government’s authority is at a low point. The next Congress — and indeed the next president — must begin the vital work of reclaiming public confidence and support. Without it, public alienation will only deepen. And that will be bad for everyone. After all, it is impossible to sustain the public’s love for our country if the citizens hold contempt for its governing institutions.

Because of a widespread failure of political leadership, America is not in a good place at the present moment.