Land of the Free? Not Under Obama, Poll Says

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Independence Day is approaching and Americans sense their freedoms are starting to slip away under President Obama.

Gallup released a poll Tuesday that asked citizens in 120 countries, “In this country, are you satisfied or dissatisfied with your freedom to choose what you do with your life?” The survey revealed that Obama has presided over a marked decline in freedom satisfaction for Americans, even compared to other countries, and we now rank 36th:

Fewer Americans are satisfied with the freedom to choose what they do with their lives compared with seven years ago — dropping 12 percentage points from 91% in 2006 to 79% in 2013. In that same period, the percentage of Americans dissatisfied with the freedom to choose what they do with their lives more than doubled, from 9% to 21%.

 

Gallup asks people in more than 120 countries each year whether they are satisfied or dissatisfied with the freedom to choose what they do with their lives. In 2006, the U.S. ranked among the highest in the world for people reporting satisfaction with their level of freedom. After seven years and a 12-point decline, the U.S. no longer makes the top quartile worldwide.

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Of the countries where Gallup asked residents about satisfaction with their freedom in 2006 and 2013 (108 in total), only 10 countries had declines as large or larger than the decrease seen in the U.S.

That decrease puts us in company with the likes of Egypt, Greece, and Pakistan.

Gallup says the economy could be a factor in our decline, but that recent polls show Americans feel the economy is improving. More telling is the number of Americans who say corruption is widespread throughout the government, which has jumped from 59% in 2006 to 79% in 2013. Gallup found that satisfaction with freedom correlates with perceptions of corruption in national government.

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Perceived widespread corruption in the U.S. government could be on the rise for several reasons, including the significant media attention on issues such as the IRS targeting of conservative groups and National Security Agency leaks. Americans not only feel that the U.S. government is performing poorly, as demonstrated by record-low congressional approval ratings, but they also report that the U.S. government itself as one of the biggest problem facing the country today.

These are all attributable to Obama and his abuse of power these last 5 years. Americans have less freedom to choose what they do with their lives — less healthcare choice, less religious freedom, less free speech — and it is reflected in this poll.

This Independence Day it is even more important we heed the warning of President Ronald Reagan and fight to keep the spirit of freedom from the Founders alive:

“Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn’t pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children’s children what it was once like in the United States where men were free.”

– President Ronald Reagan

Alexa is a freelance writer and communications consultant, with experience working on the Hill, at the RNC, and for... More about Alexa

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