In official Washington, there appears to be a belief that policy makers must choose between helping the economy or reducing spending and deficits. A number of polling companies have even asked questions on the trade-off.

Americans are evenly divided over whether marijuana should be legalized in the United States, but most expect it to happen within the next decade.

Eighty-seven percent (87%) of U.S. voters say it is at least somewhat likely that a woman will be elected president of the United States in the next 25 years, up eight points from nearly four years ago.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 75% of Likely Voters prefer free markets over a government managed economy. Just 14% think a government managed economy is better while 11% are not sure. These figures have changed little since December.

Just 20% of U.S. voters favor the building of an Islamic mosque near the Ground Zero site of the World Trade Center in New York City, according to a new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey.

Voters have mixed feelings about government regulation of big business, but most feel small businesses are regulated too much. There is also a strong belief that more competition and less regulation would be better for the economy and job creation.

If Republicans win control of Congress this fall, voters overwhelmingly believe the nation’s legislature should wait until the newly elected officials take office before considering major legislation. Most, however, expect that Democrats will try to pass new legislation before turning over control.

Most voters now believe it is at least somewhat likely that Republicans will win control of both houses of Congress in this November’s elections, and nearly half say there will a noticeable change in the lives of Americans if this happens.

The notion that governments derive their only just authority from the consent of the governed is a foundational principle of the American experiment.

The frustration that voters are expressing in 2010 goes much deeper than specific policies. At a more fundamental level, voters just don’t believe politicians are interested in the opinions of ordinary Americans.