Opinion

LEE CARTER: Why I believe collapsing trust, not ideology, is reshaping American politics

Gallup polling shows Congress holds just 9% public confidence as anti-establishment populism surges across party lines

By Lee Hartley Carter Fox News

Published July 20, 2026 5:00am EDT

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Far-left Michigan Senate candidate faces 'champagne socialism' accusations

Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed faces 'champagne socialism' accusations as his 2025 household income of $686,069 is nearly 10 times Michigan's median.

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After every recent election in which a Democratic Socialist or self-described progressive outsider scores an upset victory, the same debate erupts: Is America really moving that far to the left?

Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rise in New York reignited the question. Before his campaign collapsed, Graham Platner’s meteoric rise in Maine sparked similar headlines. And now, as Democrats look to replace him, many are rallying around Troy Jackson, a self-described "pickup truck progressive."

The conventional wisdom is that these victories signal a country embracing increasingly liberal ideas.

DSA ROLLS OUT NEW PLATFORM AHEAD OF MIDTERMS

I don’t think that’s what’s happening.

Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., stands with Troy Jackson (L), who is running for governor of Maine, and now former Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Graham Platner during a "Fighting Oligarchy" tour stop at the Collins Center for the Arts on the University of Maine campus on May 24, 2026, in Orono, Maine. (Joe Raedle / Getty Images)

The rise of democratic socialism isn’t the story.

It’s the symptom.

SOCIALISM’S RISE INSIDE THE DEMOCRATIC PARTY NOW THREATENS THE AMERICAN DREAM

The real story is that millions of Americans have lost confidence in the........

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