Americans Cite DOD As The One Agency Most Important To The Future Of Our Nation

By Jeff Marchesseault

GUAM - A national survey conducted by The Gallup Organization shows that most Americans give the Air Force and the Department of Defense high marks for professionalism, trust, accuracy, and quality.

Of the 40,000 people it polled, Gallup found that 78 percent of Americans rate DOD high for professionalism, trust, accuracy and quality. The public also cited DOD as the agency most important to the future of our nation.

These national attitudes about the military are consistent with similar thoughts and feelings in the Territory. The Guam Chamber of Commerce's last published poll showed that 71 percent of locals favored the military buildup. Guam's rates of enlistment, service and sacrifice are legendary -- and so is the island's historical and progressive legacy of patriotism.

This is no more aptly reflected than in Guam's loyalty to the U.S. before, during and after World War II as well as in the traditional high levels of participation in its biggest holiday. Tens of thousands line Marine Corps Drive every July 21st for the annual Liberation Parade, even though most of us expect rain on that day every year.

The Air Force News Service reports that Americans rated the military the highest among federal agencies, according to Gallup's five-point scale.

Here is the Air Force news report in its entirety:

Posted 11/23/2009 Updated 11/23/2009 Email story Print story

By Master Sgt. Stan Parker, Air Force News Service

11/23/2009 - WASHINGTON -- The Air Force with the Department of Defense has received high ratings for its professionalism, trust, accuracy and quality, according to a recent survey.

The findings were presented during a recent panel discussion following a Gallup Organization study, analyzing how Americans perceive the federal government.

"Overall the survey asked Americans to rate the federal government on a five point scale," said Frank Newport, editor in chief of the Gallup poll. "The military was included and was the highest."

"We asked which branch of the military is most important to the United States and it historically continues to be the Air Force," Mr. Newport said. He added the military has continued to do well in spite of challenges with its nuclear enterprise and the on-going war in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Following President Barack Obama's call for "a high-performance government," Gallup officials conducted the study to examine public attitudes about the "overall customer experience" across all federal agencies. The study asked more than 40,000 American citizens to answer a series of questions about the level and quality of service they received from federal agencies, painting a clearer picture of the overall experience of individual's interactions with the agencies.

Although the study concluded Americans have the most governmental contact through tourism by way of the National Park Service and the Transportation Security Administration, contact with the Air Force and Navy has been fairly positive, Mr. Newport said.

The study's data illustrated how Americans feel about their interactions with the federal government, why they interact with the federal government and with which agencies they most frequently interact.

When asked to provide a wide variety of opinions on the overall performance of different sectors of government, 78 percent of Americans expressed positive views about the performance of the U.S. military, making it the highest-rated sector. When asked to identify the one agency that is most important to the future of the country, the public cited DOD and considered it the most prestigious agency. Although DOD rated high, the Central Intelligence Agency was viewed as the federal employer of choice, which was consistent with previous studies.

"The key here is that information is absolutely viable, and you can't manage what you don't measure," said Max Stier, president and chief executive officer for Partnership for Public Service and panel member. The reason government is facing critical challenges is largely due to a lack of long term goals and useful real-time health of organizations, Mr. Stier added.

Panel members agreed the federal government has been largely misunderstood of how best to serve its customer base and believed Gallup's initiative will foster growth in meeting the challenge.

"We have lost track of what the public wants and needs. We need to make sure we understand the American public, which serves as a very diversified customer base," Mr. Stier said. "But the information that this study provides us is useful information to manage public expectations effectively."

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