Numbers, Facts and Trends Shaping Your World

Government

  • report

    Four Years After Walter Reed, Government Still Faulted for Troop Support

    Overview As President Obama begins to draw down U.S. forces in Afghanistan, most Americans continue to say that government support for troops returning from war is falling short. The public remains divided over whether the American people give enough support to soldiers who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan. Opinions on this tilt more negative, […]

  • report

    Ideological Chasm Over Interpreting Constitution

    As the Supreme Court’s current term concludes, public opinion is evenly divided about how the justices should interpret the Constitution when determining their rulings. Half of Americans (50%) say the Court’s rulings should be based on its understanding of what the U.S. Constitution means in current times, while about as many (45%) say rulings should […]

  • report

    Arab Spring Fails to Improve U.S. Image

    Support for democracy is high throughout much of the Middle East, but the Arab Spring has not led to an improvement in America’s image in the region. Instead, in key Arab nations and in other predominantly Muslim countries, views of the U.S. remain negative. On balance, extremist groups also viewed negatively, although they receive significant levels of support in some countries.

  • presentation

    Emerging Trends in E-Government

    Senior Research Specialist Aaron Smith will discuss “Emerging Trends in E-Government” on a panel at the Digital Citizen Satisfaction Summit in Washington, DC.

  • report

    Budget Negotiations in a Word – “Ridiculous”

    Overview The public has an overwhelmingly negative reaction to the budget negotiations that narrowly avoided a government shutdown. A weekend survey by the Pew Research Center for the People & the Press and the Washington Post finds that “ridiculous” is the word used most frequently to describe the budget negotiations, followed by “disgusting,” “frustrating,” “messy,” […]

  • report

    Public Would Blame Both Sides if Government Shuts Down

    With an April 8 deadline approaching for a possible shutdown of the federal government, the public was divided over whether congressional Republicans or the Obama administration would be more to blame if a shutdown occurs.

  • fact sheet

    Churches in Court

    Whenever churches or religious organizations find themselves involved in civil litigation, courts first must determine whether the First Amendment’s religion clauses bestow a unique legal status on religious organizations that puts some of their decisions and actions beyond the reach of civil laws.

  • report

    Religion and the Courts: The Pillars of Church-State Law

    In an ongoing series of occasional reports, “Religion and the Courts: The Pillars of Church-State Law,” the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life explores the complex, fluid relationship between government and religion. Among the issues to be examined are religion in public schools, displays of religious symbols on public property, conflicts concerning the free […]