"A majority (57%) of Americans believe the federal government today has too much power. Most of the rest say the government has about the right amount of power. Few say the government has too little power. Americans were least likely to be concerned about the government's power in the years immediately after 9/11, but half or more since 2005 have said it has too much power."-Frank Newport

      This passage basically points out how recent polls show how a majority if Americans believe that the government has too much power in their hands.  And the rest either believe that the government does not have enough power, and or that it has sufficient or a good amount of power.  It also mentions how after the events of September 9, 2011, people were not as harsh on the government concerning the power that they had.  However a few years after the incident, the poll showed how people were no longer pleased with the amount of power that the government had.  It's important to notice the chronological order in which the data was described in, it can lead to new conclusions.

      I found it important to touch in this passage because if we look at the years in which the polls showed change we can notice an interesting idea.  The author speaks of how Americans weren't very "concerned" of the power that federal government maintained after 9/11; this is important because the years after the event happened, Americans feared for their safety and so they were more likely to be lenient towards power that the government obtained.  Americans were willing to give up some of their "freedom" or "privacy" for exchange of safety that they believed the government would give them.  Recently it seems as if the people who oppose the government's power, are people who feel as if their privacy is being invaded.  After 9/11 happened people didn't feel safe, and so if the government proposed an idea that allowed the government more power, it was more likely for people to agree to it.  However around 2005, 9/11 wasn't as relevant in people's life; people didn't feel comfortable with the power that government had gained over the years.  The whole thing says something about citizens, as well as the government.  When residents feel threatened, they are more likely to surrender power to the government; as for the government, it is more likely to take advantage of the situation and cross boundaries and limits.