THE founding fathers of the United States asserted that elected officials should listen to and be influenced by the views of the electorate. As James Madison said, “It is the reason, alone, of the public, that ought to control and regulate the government.”
However, the means for government officials to hear from the people are limited. Elected officials receive emails, letters, phone calls and input at town halls, and some agencies occasionally ask for public comments on complex regulations. Americans express very low levels of confidence that they influence the policymaking process and that elected officials understand the views of the people, undermining trust in the democratic process.
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